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THE  VENTURER  BOOK  SHOP 

33  WARRENTON  STREET 

BOSTON.  MASS. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2011  with  funding  from 

Boston  Library  Consortium  Member  Libraries 


http://www.archive.org/details/gettingyourmoney1922lord 


GETTING    YOUR    MONEYS 
WORTH 

A  BOOK  ON  EXPENDITURE 


BY 

ISABEL  ELY  LORD^-^ 

1910-20  Director,  School  of  Household  Science 
and  Arts,  Pratt  Institute 


4     CHESTNUT  HIU.MM,S. 


■ 


NEW  YORK 
HARCOURT,    BRACE    AND    COMPANY 


COPYRIGHT,    1922,    BY 
HARCOURT,    BRACE    AND  COMPANY,    INC. 


PRINTED    IN    THE    U.  S.   A.   BY 

THE    QUINN    &    BODEN    COMPANY 

RAHWAY.    N.    J. 


TO  MY  MOTHER 

who  has  always  been  my  best  teacher 
as  well  as  my  best  friend 


PEEFACE 

The  purpose  of  this  book  is  intensely  practical.  Erom 
long  experience  in  the  School  of  Household  Science  and 
Arts  of  Pratt  Institute,  where  thousands  of  women  have 
come  for  help  in  all  phases  of  their  homemaking  prob- 
lems, and  from  experience  with  many  other  women, 
young  and  old,  earning  a  money  income  or  sharing  in 
a  marriage  partnership,  I  have  learned  that  one  great 
obstacle  in  planning  expenditure — in  budget  making — 
is  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  mere  mechanics  of  it.  To 
those  inexperienced  in  financial  record  it  looks  like  a 
complicated  and  a  formidable  undertaking,  whereas  it 
is  neither  if  approached  and  carried  out  in  the  right 
way. 

The  book  deals  primarily  with  making  a  budget  and 
keeping  accounts,  and  discusses  other  matters  only  as 
they  relate  closely  to  these.  "Getting  your  money's 
worth"  means  knowledge  of  how  to  choose  and  how  to 
buy,  as  well  as  how  to  apportion  the  income,  but  here, 
for  the  sake  of  brevity,  only  the  latter  aspect  of  it  is 
discussed.  The  subject  of  cash  payment  versus  credit, 
for  example,  is  not  touched  on,  although  those  who 
grasp  the  principle  of  budget  making  will  have  little 


vi  PKEFACE 

difficulty  in  deciding  in  a  given  case  which  method  is 
best. 

Miss  Gertrude  B.  Lane,  editor  of  the  Woman's  Home 
Companion,  has  courteously  allowed  me  free  use  of  the 
material  in  two  articles  written  by  me  for  that  maga- 
zine and  published  in  July  and  August,  1919.  Miss 
Helen  Hollister  and  Miss  Elizabeth  Condit,  of  the 
faculty  of  the  School  of  Household  Science  and  Arts 
of  Pratt  Institute,  and  Miss  Sarah  MacLeod  and  Miss 
Jessie  Ann  Long,  formerly  of  that  faculty,  have  con- 
tributed much  to  the  development  of  the  plan  described, 
and  my  thanks  are  hereby  tendered  to  them. 

Isabel  Ely  Lord. 

October,   1921. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER 

PAGE 

Preface      

V 

I 

What  a  Budget  Is   . 

1 

II 

Who  Makes  the  Family  Budget  ? 

11 

III 

When  and  How  to  Make  It  . 

19 

IV 

The  Big  Items          .... 

41 

V 

The  Lessee  Items    .... 

58 

VI 

Why  and  What  Accounts  ?     . 

85 

VII 

How  to  Keep  Accounts 

92 

VIII 

On  Eeadjusting       .... 

113 

IX 

The  Income  Besides  Money  . 

123 

X 

Conserving  as  an  Asset 

133 

XI 

On  Inventories        .... 

.      143 

XII 

The  Individual  Budget 

.      148 

XIII 

Training  the  Children  . 

152 

XIV 

Using  Banks 

.      163 

XV 

Savings  and  Investments 

.      185 

XVI 

The  Besult 

202 

GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S 
WORTH 


WHAT  A  BUDGET  IS 

A  budget  is  the  detailed  plan  of  the  use  of  resources, 
and  the  word  generally  used  to  mean  money  resources 
only.  ISTo  intelligent  person  thinks  of  beginning  a  piece 
of  work,  whether  it  is  the  building  of  a  house,  the  plant- 
ing of  a  garden,  the  making  of  a  dress  or  a  dessert, 
without  a  plan.  One  must  know  what  is  needed  and 
whether  one  has  at  hand  the  resources  necessary — the 
ingredients,  so  to  speak.  Where  money  is  to  be  spent, 
a  budget  is  part  of  the  plan.  The  builder  has  a  budget 
for  the  project  of  the  house,  the  dressmaker  one  for  the 
project  of  the  dress.  In  such  cases  they  call  it  an  "esti- 
mate," and  that  is  no  bad  name  for  the  budget  as  applied 
to  the  expenditure  of  the  family  or  the  individual. 

The  spending  of  an  income  is  of  course  not  a  definite 
project  like  the  building  of  a  house  or  the  making  of  a 
gown.    But  although  the  result  cannot  be  pictured  in  the 

same  concrete  way,  yet  there  is  a  result  to  be  attained. 

l 


2  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

What  is  it?  The  answer  to  this  question  is  of  great 
importance.  Money — the  income — is  only  a  symbol  to 
represent  whatever  the  owner  may  wish  to  turn  it  into. 
The  business  man,  the  manufacturer,  uses  it  to  make 
more  money,  as  far  as  his  business  is  concerned.  The 
family  or  the  individual,  on  the  other  hand,  uses  it  to 
make  the  greatest  possible  amount  of  health  and  happi- 
ness. The  business  man  or  the  manufacturer  can  tell 
at  the  end  of  the  year  how  much  he  has  "made"  in  dol- 
lars and  cents;  the  family  and  the  individual  cannot 
express  either  in  dollars  and  cents  or  in  figures  of  any 
kind  what  they  have  "made"  by  their  expenditure  on 
daily  living.  Only  money  saved  can  be  stated  in  those 
terms,  and  that,  important  as  it  is,  as  representing 
future  health  and  happiness,  is  after  all  a  minor  part 
of  the  year's  results. 

But  why,  asks  the  average  individual,  is  it  necessary 
to  have  the  same  kind  of  a  detailed  plan  as  the  builder 
or  the  business  man,  when  the  result  is  one  that  cannot 
be  expressed  in  terms  of  money  ?  The  answer  is  that 
it  is  equally  important  in  such  a  case  because  the  things 
any  family  or  individual  would  like  to  get  out  of  their 
money  resources  are  always  so  many  more  than  their 
resources  allow  that  only  the  deliberate  decision  in 
advance  will  ensure  their  getting  what  they  want  most. 
No  one  has  either  time  enough,  energy  enough,  or  money 
enough  to  do  and  to  get  and  to  give  all  he  or  she  would 


WHAT  A  BUDGET  IS  3 

like.  That  we  want  more  than  we  have  is  the  very 
foundation  of  progress,  whether  what  we  want  is  ma- 
terial or  spiritual.  Often  the  man  or  the  family  gen- 
erally called  rich  feels  even  more  hampered  financially 
than  the  man  or  family  called  poor.  From  personal 
experience  or  observation  we  all  know  that  as  the  in- 
come gets  larger,  there  arise  within  us  more  and  more 
desires  and  demands  and  what  we  call  needs.  We  "get 
our  money's  worth"  only  when  we  consider  well  how 
out  of  what  we  have  we  can  get  the  largest  amount  of 
what  we  want  most. 

Those  who  have  never  made  a  budget  and  lived  by 
it — and  even,  unfortunately,  many  of  those  who  have — 
are  apt  to  look  on  the  budget  as  limiting  the  person 
who  makes  it.  "I  will  not  be  tied  by  a  budget  and 
accounts.  I  am  not  extravagant.  I  don't  get  into  debt, 
and  I  don't  spend  more  than  my  income.  I  shouldn't 
enjoy  spending  anything  if  a  budget  limited  me  at  every 
turn."  That  is  the  attitude  of  hundreds.  But  the 
truth  of  the  matter  is  just  the  opposite  of  what  they 
think.  It  is  not  the  budget  that  sets  the  limits,  but 
the  income.  The  person  who  has  all  the  money  he  or 
she  wants  to  do  everything — that  person  is  subnormal 
or  abnormal.  What  the  budget  does  is  to  free  from 
limitations  as  far  as  that  can  be  done  within  the  limits 
of  the  income.  The  budget  is  not  a  thing  for  which 
the  individual  or  the  family  lives  and  to  which  they 


4  GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WORTH 

may  be  sacrificed.  It  is  made  for  them;  they  are  not 
made  for  it.  It  is  their  deliberate  decision  in  advance 
as  to  what  are  the  most  important — to  them — of  the 
many  things  they  want.  Having  made  such  deliberate 
decision  they  can  use  their  money  freely  and  with  sat- 
isfaction. 

Take  an  example,  for  the  sake  of  simplification  that 
of  an  individual  living  on  salary  or  wages.  To  make 
the  matter  concrete,  let  us  choose  a  stenographer  get- 
ting $30  a  week.  At  the  beginning  of  the  year  the 
stenographer  decides  just  how  much  of  the  $1,560  an- 
nual income  may  rightly  go  for  clothes.  The  amount 
will  depend  partly  on  the  individual's  other  expenses, 
partly  on  taste.  Suppose  it  to  be  $300.  That  amount 
the  individual  deliberately  determines  is  justified  in 
his  or  her  case.  Then  begins  the  question  of  expendi- 
ture. If  the  stenographer  is  a  man,  and  he  longs  for 
a  suit  made  by  a  good  tailor,  but  hesitates  because  that 
may  be  an  extravagance  in  his  situation,  then  he  need 
no  longer  even  think  of  extravagance.  It  is  only  a  mat- 
ter of  calculation  and  decision.  If  he  can  get  the  suit 
and  have  enough  left  to  meet  his  other  clothing  neces- 
sities, then  it  becomes  a  question  of  choice.  If  he  is 
willing  to  go  without  some  of  the  other  things  he  usually 
buys,  he  is  quite  free  to  spend  his  money  as  he  will, 
within  the  $300.  If  the  stenographer  is  a  girl  or  woman, 
and  she  longs  for  a  set  of  furs,  she  is  free  to  get  it  in 


WHAT  A  BUDGET  IS  5 

the  same  way.  Of  course  both  must  consider  first  the 
demands  of  health  and  the  need  of  suitable  working 
dress,  but  beyond  that  each  has  a  right  to  exercise  choice. 
They  may  show  poor  judgment,  from  the  point  of  view 
of  onlookers,  but  they  cannot  rightly  be  called  "ex- 
travagant" either  by  themselves  or  others.  If,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  stenographer  has  made  no  plan  for  ex- 
penditure, the  temptation  to  custom-made  clothes  or  a 
set  of  furs  may,  if  yielded  to,  lead  to  over-expenditure 
in  the  clothing  for  the  year,  to  a  constant  uneasiness  as 
to  the  question  of  "extravagance"  and  perhaps,  worst 
of  all,  to  a  recklessness  that  says :  "I  don't  care.  I've 
got  to  live,  and  have  some  fun,  and  I'll  live  as  I  go." 

Extravagance  is  "a  wandering  beyond  proper 
bounds,"  to  take  the  primary  definition  of  the  Cen- 
tury Dictionary.  In  money  matters  the  bounds  that 
come  naturally  first  to  mind  are  those  of  the  income.  He 
who  spends  more  than  his  money  income  is  extravagant. 
That  sounds  axiomatic,  yet  is  it  always  true  ?  Are  there 
no  occasions  where  borrowing  is  justified?  Or  the  use 
of  accumulated  savings?  Such  questions  lead  us  back 
to  the  obligations  implied  in  the  word  "proper."  If  the 
right  use  of  the  income  is  to  procure  the  greatest  possi- 
ble amount  of  health  and  happiness,  then  these  con- 
siderations are  the  "proper  bounds"  beyond  which  we 
cannot  wander  without  extravagance. 

Obviously,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  the  family 


6  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

or  the  individual  should  live  within  the  income,  but  if 
health  makes  a  call  on  savings  or  even  requires  borrow- 
ing, then  health,  not  savings,-  and  not  keeping  free  of 
debt,  must  come  first.  The  good  business  man  often 
borrows  in  order  to  enlarge  his  business  operations,  and 
his  judgment  is  justified  by  increased  gain.  So  an 
individual  may  borrow  to  regain  his  health  or  for  educa- 
tional opportunities,  and  be  justified  in  the  result.  In 
both  cases  this  is  really  investment,  not  expenditure,  and 
in  accurate  accounting  a  trip  South  for  health  would 
be  considered  an  investment,  though  it  must  in  one's 
personal  accounts  figure  as  expense.  Such  expenditure 
is  not  common,  but  it  is  important  to  note  it  because  it 
illustrates  the  principle  underlying  budget  making  and 
budget  adjusting. 

Economy  needs  a  word,  by  the  way.  Unfortunately 
to  most  people  the  word  has  a  rather  unpleasant  sound, 
because  to  them  it  means  going  without  things  one  wants. 
It  is  certain  that  if  we  cannot  get  with  our  resources 
all  that  we  would  like  to  get,  we  must  go  without  some 
of  it,  but  it  is  most  regrettable  to  have  this  negative 
aspect  of  economy  so  prominent.  "Economy"  does  not 
mean  "saving,"  but  "right  use."  The  right  use  of 
part  of  our  money  leads  to  saving  that  part,  but  what 
we  spend  on  recreation,  food,  clothing,  or  anything  else 
is  just  as  economically  used  as  that  saved,  if  we  have 
been  wise  in  our  distribution  of  our  money  resources. 


WHAT  A  BUDGET  IS  7 

It  is  evident  that  budget  making  must  be  a  personal 
matter,  differing  for  individuals  or  families  who  seem 
at  first  glance  alike  as  to  resources  and  needs.  Each  of 
course  is  bound  to  provide  conditions  that  make  for 
health — a  place  to  live  in  that  is  comfortable  and  sani- 
tary, food  that  is  wholesome  and  appetizing,  clothing 
that  is  adequate,  and  some  provision  for  the  recreation 
needed  by  every  human  being.  Each  must  for  safety 
accumulate  a  reserve  fund  for  emergencies — illness, 
death,  failure  of  income,  loss  of  any  sort.  But  when 
even  these  fundamentals  are  interpreted  by  different 
individuals,  differences  manifest  themselves  at  once. 
It  may  be  possible  to  come  to  a  common  agreement  on 
what  is  "sanitary"  in  a  living  place,  but  "comfortable" 
means  very  different  things  to  different  people.  Per- 
sonal tastes,  likes  and  dislikes,  begin  at  once  to  play 
their  part.  The  desire  for  beauty  in  one's  surround- 
ings is  general,  but  what  seems  beautiful  to  one  is  to 
another  distressingly  commonplace  or  ugly.  The  budget 
as  an  aid  to  the  development  of  individual  or  family 
must  be  planned  by  the  people  who  are  to  live  under 
it  on  the  basis  of  their  own  tastes  and  desires. 

The  budget  can  never  be  imposed  on  the  family  or 
individual.  Many  with  good  judgment  gathered  from 
experience  can  offer  worth-while  advice  to  those  who 
are  beginning*  to  plan,  but  no  one  else  can  make  the 
detailed  decisions.     We  are  all  only  too  apt  to  try  to 


8  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

do  so.  Few  of  us  are  guiltless  of  having  accused  some 
one  else  of  "extravagance"  when  what  we  meant  was 
that  for  us  personally  that  particular  expenditure 
would  have  been  foolish  or  wasteful.  We  all  have  the 
right  to  certain  opinions  on  others'  expenditure — such  as 
that  they  have  poor  judgment,  if  the  expenditure  seems 
to  us  inefficient  in  gaining  the  ends  they  seek,  or  that 
their  standards  are  low  if  those  ends  are  what  seem  to 
us  frivolous  ones,  such  as  showy  dressing  or  indis- 
criminate entertaining.  But  we  have  no  right  to  con- 
demn as  "extravagant"  any  one  who  meets  all  his 
obligations. 

It  is  a  commonplace  that  in  America  we  suffer  from 
too  much  uniformity  in  the  practices  of  everyday  life. 
We  are  held  too  rigidly  by  little  conventions,  and  what 
we  gain  by  doing  as  our  neighbors  do  is  sometimes  small 
compensation  for  what  we  lose  in  individual  expression. 
The  deliberate  planning  of  the  budget  should  help  us 
in  many  minor  ways — not  always  the  spending  of 
money — to  do  what  we  really  want  to  do  instead  of 
what  is  expected  of  us.  The  family  that  has  faced  the 
choice  of  having  a  houseworker  regularly  employed  or 
of  giving  good  music  lessons  to  a  talented  child,  and 
has  made  a  deliberate  decision  for  the  musical  education, 
ceases  to  be  apologetic  about  not  having  a  maid  to  open 
the  door. 

The  greatest  importance  of  the  budget  is,  indeed,  that 


WHAT  A  BUDGET  IS  9 

it  makes  one  consider  values.  For  the  sake  of  simplicity, 
and  because  the  family  budget  is  always  ot  greater 
importance  socially  than  can  be  that  of  an  individual, 
this  book  will  speak  in  the  terms  of  the  family,  giving 
special  consideration  to  the  budget  of  the  individual  in 
Chapter  XII.  The  family,  then,  by  adopting  a  budget 
must  acknowledge  frankly  its  desires  and  hopes  and 
then  arrange  these  in  the  order  of  their  importance.  In 
other  words,  the  family  must  put  itself  on  record  as  to 
its  ideals.  Any  person  who  does  this  at  stated  inter- 
vals makes  a  better  choice  than  when  he  or  she  leaves 
ideals  in  the  vague  realm  of  some-day-or-other.  Indeed, 
the  greatest  value  of  the  budget  to  individual  or  family 
is  that  it  forces  them  to  make  clear  their  own  ideals 
and  to  decide  how  far  those  ideals  are  to  be  regarded  in 
daily  living.  Given  the  resources  available  and  pro- 
viding out  of  them  the  necessities,  what  is  the  order  of 
importance  of  the  other  things  the  family  income  can 
obtain  ? 

There  is  a  fairy  story  or  folk  tale  common  to  many 
lands  in  which  three  wishes  are  unexpectedly  granted 
to  some  individual.  A  man  is  told  that  he  may  have 
anything  he  likes  in  the  world,  but  he  may  wish  only 
three  times.  Invariably  he  has  to  use  the  third  wish  to 
undo  the  evil  brought  on  him  by  the  first  two.  One 
version  tells  of  a  peasant  who  thought  first  of  something 
to  eat,  so  wished  for  a  big  black  pudding,  the  height  of 


10  GETTING  YOTJE  MONEY'S  WORTH 

his  gastronomic  desires.  The  pudding  appeared,  but 
in  a  few  moments,  his  wife  in  a  fit  of  temper  cried :  "I 
wish  the  pudding  would  stick  to  your  nose !"  Which  the 
large  black  pudding  promptly  did.  Then  no  other  wish 
was  possible  than  the  separation  of  that  pudding  and 
that  nose,  since  gold  and  lands  and  honor  could  hardly 
compensate  for  such  a  burden.  So  the  pudding  came  off, 
the  three  wishes  were  used,  arid  the  partially  damaged 
pudding  was  the  only  result.  It  is  not  only  folk  humor 
that  told  that  tale,  but  also  folk  wisdom.  And  the  moral 
is  as  good  to-day  as  it  was  when  the  cave  man  began 
to  develop  desires. 

So  the  question  for  the  family  is  what  kind  of  happi- 
ness they  want — out  of  what  they  choose  to  get  it.  The 
wishes  allowed  by  the  budget  are  not  unlimited  in  ex- 
tent, but  they  are  more  than  three  in  number,  and,  best 
of  all,  they  may  be  changed  as  often  as  the  vision 
broadens  and  as  the  family  learns  better  the  art  of 
wishing. 


II 

WHO  MAKES  THE  FAMILY  BUDGET? 

The  family  is  a  cooperative  group  at  the  foundation 
of  our  social  structure.  There  must  be  kinship  in  this 
group.  When  the  kinship  is  of  mind  and  spirit  only, 
as  with  a  group  of  friends,  the  family  may  be  a  real 
one,  and  have  distinct  social  value,  but  the  word  "fam- 
ily" in  ordinary  usage  implies  a  relationship  in  blood, 
and  implies  also  some  head  or  heads  of  the  group.  The 
normal  family  has  father,  mother  and  child  or  chil- 
dren. If  the  father  dies,  if  there  are  no  children  or 
if  the  latter  grow  up  and  leave  the  family  home  to 
establish  homes  of  their  own,  those  left  do  not  cease 
to  be  a  family,  but  are  none  the  less,  in  any  ordinary 
usage,  an  incomplete  family.  The  vast  majority  of 
families  include  parents  and  children,  and  in  this  vast 
majority  many  contain  other  relations,  such  as  grand- 
parents, uncles,  aunts  or  cousins. 

This  cooperative  group  has  many  interests  in  com- 
mon, however  many  additional  interests  there  may  be. 
Aside  from  the  common  needs  of  food,  clothing,  shelter, 
recreation,  there  is  need  in  the  family  life  for  a  kind  of 

cooperation  that  will  make  for  harmony  in  the  home 

11 


12  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

and  for  the  greatest  freedom  of  individual  development 
that  is  compatible  with  such  harmony.  The  common 
interests  must  be  cared  for  first,  then  individual  needs 
considered.  Within  the  group,  each  contributes  accord- 
ing to  his  ability,  and  receives  his  proportionate  share 
according  to  his  needs. 

It  is  not  uncommon  to  hear  the  household — that  is, 
the  family — spoken  of  as  a  "business,"  and  the  mother 
of  the  family,  who  directs  the  detailed  expenditure  for 
common  needs,  spoken  of  as  the  "business  manager." 
Some  even  go  so  far  as  to  say  that  she  should  have  a 
salary  for  her  work,  like  any  other  business  manager. 
Any  such  conception  of  course  ignores  the  real  nature 
of  family  life.  There  is  a  business  side  to  it,  granted, 
but  it  is  not  a  business  in  the  same  sense  that  a  money- 
making  organization  is  a  business.  Its  purpose  is  differ- 
ent, and  its  attitude  toward  money  must  be  different 
also.  And  the  wife  and  mother  is  not  a  paid  worker, 
engaged  for  life,  but  something  far  finer  and  bigger 
than  that.  If  Mother  is  paid  a  salary,  then  Father  is 
her  employer,  and  he  pays  her  for  looking  out  for  him- 
self and  the  children.  It  is  true  that  such  a  relation- 
ship is  an  improvement  on  the  old  one  of  Mother  as 
financially  dependent  on  Father,  who  may  occasionally 
graciously  grant  her  a  little  money  to  spend  for  her- 
self, or  may  not.  But  it  is  far  from  the  ideal  of  the 
cooperative  group. 


WHO  MAKES  THE  FAMILY  BUDGET?       13 

Marriage  is  a  partnership,  in  the  interests  of  the 
whole  family  group.  The  husband  and  wife  are  the 
partners,  and  full  partners,  the  children  apprentices, 
learning  how  to  live  in  such  a  partnership  themselves, 
and  as  they  grow  older  within  the  home  they  may 
even  become  junior  partners.  In  the  usual  family  the 
father  gives  his  working  hours  to  earning  a  money  in- 
come, the  mother  hers  to  directing  all  the  activities  of 
the  household,  including  the  spending  of  that  part  of 
the  income  used  for  the  family  living.  The  income, 
whether  in  money  or  in  labor,  belongs  equally  to  both 
husband  and  wife,  in  trust  for  the  family.  The  wife 
has  just  as  much  "right"  to  the  money  income  as  has 
the  husband — and  no  more  right. 

There  are  still  belated  households  where  the  wife 
has  no  clear  idea  of  the  family  income  and  can  spend 
only  what  she  can  get  out  of  her  husband  in  irregular 
payments  of  irregular  amounts.  In  many  of  those 
households  charge  accounts  at  shops  of  different  types 
give  the  wife  a  chance  to  get  things  for  herself  that 
she  could  never  get  by  paying  cash,  since  she  never 
has  it  in  any  quantity.  This  system  is  not  only  deeply 
humiliating  to  the  woman  and  demoralizing  to  the 
children,  but  wasteful.  There  are  many  other  house- 
holds where  the  wife  receives  a  regular  allowance  for 
maintaining  the  house,  but  unfortunately  in  too  many 
cases  she  must  £et  from  this  allowance  all  that  she  needs 


14  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

for  herself  also.  The  conscientious  housewife  in  such 
a  situation  invariably  fails  to  get  her  due  share,  and  at 
the  same  time  frequently  suffers  qualms  of  doubt  when- 
ever she  spends  anything  whatever  on  herself. 

The  next  step  is  a  series  of  allowances — one  for  the 
household,  one  for  the  wife,  one  for  the  children,  and 
perhaps  one  for  the  automobile.  This  is  fairly  common 
now,  and  is  a  just  arrangement  as  far  as  the  working 
of  it  goes.  If  husband  and  wife  decide  together  what 
these  allowances  are  to  be,  the  wife  is  neither  humiliated 
nor  handicapped.  Yet  this  may  be  in  full  swing  where 
the  husband  still  considers  that  he  is  the  sole  source  of 
"support,"  and  that  he  is  (with  glad  generosity,  in 
most  cases)  giving  his  money  for  the  family  use. 

In  practice  the  working  out  may  be  almost  the  same 
when  the  partnership  idea  is  accepted — almost,  not 
quite.  If  marriage  is  a  full  partnership,  then  husband 
and  wife  are  contributing  alike  to  the  family  resources. 
They  decide  together  on  the  best  use  of  the  money, 
assign  the  direction  of  expenditure  of  each  division  as 
seems  best,  but  always  keep  a  general  knowledge  of 
all  the  headings.  Usually  the  wife  takes  charge  of  the 
amount  for  household  expenses — except  that  for  some 
occult  reason  many  men  seem  to  like  to  pay  the  coal 
bills — and  for  clothing  for  herself  and  the  children ; 
the  husband  of  the  sum  for  his  own  expenses  and  of 


WHO  MAKES  THE  FAMILY  BUDGET?       15 

the  investment  of  the  money  to  be  saved.  It  is  fre- 
quent to  turn  over  to  the  wife  all  the  responsibility  for 
Gifts  (personal  or  for  the  public  good),  Recreation, 
Entertainment,  Education,  but  all  these  should  mean 
cooperation  in  spending  as  well  as  in  budgeting.  It  is 
easy  for  a  man  to  say:  "I  can't  bother  with  those  things. 
I  have  my  business  to  attend  to,  and  I  turn  everything 
else  over  to  my  wife."  That  is  shirking  part  of  the 
partnership  work,  and  certainly  the  man  who  refuses  his 
share  of  responsibility  in  the  matter  has  no  right  to 
criticize  his  wife  when  he  does  not  like  the  way  she 
does  the  work  single-handed. 

There  is  a  question  regarding  the  surplus  that  can 
be  invested.  In  a  full  partnership,  after  all  the  needs 
of  the  business  are  provided,  the  surplus  profit  is  di- 
vided equally  between  the  partners,  each  to  do  as  he 
chooses  with  his  share.  This  method  is  followed  in 
many  a  modern  family,  especially  where  the  wife  has 
earned  her  own  income  before  marriage  and  has  learned 
independently  how  to  handle  money.  A  special  sav- 
ings fund  may  be  set  aside  first  to  provide  for  the  educa- 
tion of  the  children,  or  to  cumulate  for  some  family 
purpose  like  the  purchase  of  a  home,  but  then  the  rest 
is  divided,  and  the  wife  is  as  free  to  use  hers  in  her 
own  way  as  the  husband  is  to  use  his.  Such  an  arrange- 
ment is  only  possible  where  both  partners  realize  to  the 


16  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

full  the  meaning  of  their  partnership,  but  the  oftener 
it  is  tried  successfully,  the  faster  will  be  the  growth  of 
a  full  conception  of  partnership  in  marriage. 

It  is  true  that  most  women  have  not  experience  in 
investing  money,  and  that  they  do  not  get  experience 
of  that  kind  in  their  daily  work  as  homemakers.  But 
an  intelligent  woman  can  learn  to  invest  money  as  well 
as  an  intelligent  man.  Thousands  of  wives  save  their 
husbands  from  foolish  schemes  by  "influence;"  why 
not  recognize  that  they  are  equal  to  their  own  responsi- 
bilities ?  And  if  a  woman  loses  money  in  Wall  Street 
or  in  the  oil  fields,  why  is  she  more  to  be  condemned 
than  a  man  who  does  the  same?  Only  because  those 
who  condemn  her  hold,  consciously  or  unconsciously, 
that  a  man's  money  belongs  to  him  and  the  woman's  does 
not  really  belong  to  her.  Even  if  the  responsibility  is 
not  given  her,  she  must  for  her  own  protection  and  that 
of  the  children,  know  what  the  family  investments  are, 
even  to  the  share  of  her  husband  in  his  business  and 
his  obligations  to  it.  Any  lawyer  who  has  had  much  to 
do  with  settling  estates  can  tell  many  tales  of  how  the 
ignorance  of  her  husband's  affairs  has  left  his  widow 
handicapped  or  even  deprived  of  considerable  sums  that 
are  due  to  his  estate.  The  advantage  of  division  of 
investments  is  pointed  out  in  Chapter  XVI. 

The  question  at  the  head  of  the  chapter  seems  to  be 
answered.     The  husband  and  wife  sit  down  together  to 


WHO  MAKES  THE  FAMILY  BUDGET?       17 

consider  resources  and  to  make  such  a  budget  for  their 
family  as  will  make  those  resources  count  most.  They 
assign  responsibilities  for  expenditure  of  each  heading 
as  seems  wisest  to  them,  and  they  discuss  together  later 
any  readjustments  that  have  to  be  made. 

But  how  about  the  children — the  apprentices?  Are 
they  to  have  no  hand  in  the  discussion  ?  The  deciding 
votes  must  lie  with  those  who  have  the  responsibility, 
with  Father  and  Mother.  But  in  a  cooperative  group 
have  the  minor  members  no  share?  Surely  as  soon  as 
the  children  have  reached  an  age  when  they  can  under- 
stand the  general  meaning  and  purpose  of  the  budget, 
they  should  be  included  in  the  budget  conference.  This 
does  not  mean,  of  course,  that  they  need  know  in  dol- 
lars and  cents  the  whole  family  income;  children  old 
enough  to  understand  and  discuss  the  principles  of 
division  may  not  be  old  enough  to  be  discreet  in  what 
they  repeat  of  the  family  affairs.  But  they  can  help 
decide  whether  they  will  cut  down  the  food  expenditure 
a  little — say,  have  chicken  and  ice  cream  once  a  month 
instead  of  once  a  week — so  that  Janet  can  have  violin 
lessons.  Or  they  can  help  decide  that  if  John  and  Helen 
will  be  content  with  last  winter's  coats,  Mother  will  do 
the  same  and  all  they  save  can  go  toward  a  Victrola. 

The  high  school  girl  who  must  have  silk  stockings 
because  "all  the  girls  do,"  her  brother  who  must  have 
silk  shirts  because  "all  the  boys  do,"  get  a  new  idea  of 


18  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

value  when  they  discover  that  if  the  silk  stockings  and 
silk  shirts  are  bought,  something  else  cannot  be  bought. 
The  girl  and  the  boy  do  not  want  to  deprive  Mother  of 
her  new  gown,  and  do  not  realize  that  they  do  so  when 
they  ask  for  luxuries  that  the  family  income  cannot 
meet  without  such  sacrifice.  They  have  no  idea  as  to 
limits  of  expenditure  or  choice;  they  want  "everything," 
quite  naturally  and  simply,  and  they  must  learn  those 
limits  as  definitely,  and  sometimes  as  painfully,  as  they 
must  learn  reading,  writing  and  arithmetic.  The  ques- 
tion of  training  the  children  is  dealt  with  in  Chapter 
XIII,  but  the  question  of  Who  Makes  the  Family 
Budget  ?  cannot  be  answered  without  including  them. 

It  is  repetition  to  say  here  that  no  one  outside  the 
family  can  make  the  budget  for  any  self-supporting 
group.  Those  more  experienced  may  give  wise  advice, 
but  the  responsibility  for  decision  lies  with  the  partner- 
ship. It  is  repetition  also  to  say  that  public  opinion 
should  not  be  allowed  to  make  any  of  the  decisions.  It 
should  be  considered  and  usually  it  should  not  be  de- 
fied, since  the  social  cost  of  defiance  is  too  great,  but  it 
may  and  must  many  times  be  disregarded  in  matters 
relating  to  social  prestige,  if  the  family  is  to  get  what 
it  wants  most.  Both  these  warnings  are  repeated  here 
because  both  dangers  are  large  stones  on  the  Hill  of 
Difficulty. 


Ill 

WHEN  AND  HOW  TO  MAKE  IT 

To  those  who  have  never  made  a  budget  and  have 
never  kept  accounts  the  problem  often  seems  at  first 
thought  so  difficult  a  one  that  many  decide  that  they 
have  no  basis  for  budget  making  and  must  therefore 
keep  accounts  for  a  time,  before  attempting  a  plan. 
This  is  a  mistake.  To  be  sure,  accounts  are  kept 
not  only  to  check  up  adherence  to  the  plan,  but  also  to 
make  possible  a  better  plan  later.  But  the  plan  is  the 
main  thing,  and  there  one  should  begin.  It  is  worth 
noting  that  often  nowadays  the  term  "household  bud- 
get" is  used  to  mean  accounts  as  well  as  plan.  This  is 
inaccurate,  and  as  is  usual  with  inaccuracy,  is  a  cause 
of  confusion. 

It  is  highly  advisable  to  make  first  a  list  of  the 
family  assets  and  liabilities.  This  is  not  imperative,  and 
if  the  making  of  it  is  to  delay  the  budget,  it  may  be 
postponed  for  a  little.  However,  the  sum  of  money  on 
hand  (in  cash  or  in  banks)  and  any  sum  due  the  family 
should  be  noted,  so  that  when  the  Assets  list  is  made 
up  it  may  be  "as  of"  January  1st,  or  whatever  date  is 
chosen  for  beginning  the  budget  period. 

19 


20  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

The  Assets  list  needs  first  a  sheet  of  paper,  on  which 
it  can  he  made  roughly:  when  complete  it  calls  for 
a  card  of  its  own,  to  be  filed  with  the  other  cards  as 
described  later.  As  the  years  go  by,  the  Assets  cards 
should  become  increasingly  pleasant  reading.  Begin 
with  all  money  available  at  the  moment,  whether  in  the 
form  of  cash  in  the  purse  or  bank  deposit.  Then  comes 
cash  due,  if  money  loans  have  been  made.  For  a  strict 
accounting  one  would  reckon  up  milk  tickets,  car  tickets, 
commutation  tickets,  postage  on  hand,  but  this  is  not 
necessary  for  the  family  purpose,  since  the  amount 
these  would  show  from  year  to  year  would  not  vary 
much.  If  the  family  has  just  bought  a  mileage  book, 
and  the  Transportation-other-than-Carfare  account  is 
overspent,  part  or  all  of  the  cost  of  the  book  may  be 
reckoned  in  Assets  and  charged  up  to  the  new  account. 
But  such  a  necessity  does  not  often  arise,  and  care 
should  be  taken  that  the  charging  is  not  done  to  make 
the  accounts  seem  other  than  they  are. 

Then,  in  any  order  liked,  the  list  of  investments. 
When  there  are  stocks  or  bonds,  they  may  be  listed 
either  at  the  cost  value  or  the  market  value.  The  busi- 
ness firm  would  of  course  choose  the  latter,  but  there 
is  an  advantage  to  the  family  in  preferring  the  former, 
since  it  is  not  only  simpler,  but  quite  as  apt  to  represent 
the  real  value.  For  example,  the  family  has  $450  in 
Liberty  Bonds,  bearing  interest  at  4*4  per  cent.    These 


WHEN  AND  HOW  TO  MAKE  IT  21 

bonds  were  bought  at  par — $100  or  $50 — from  the 
United  States  Government.  They  are  guaranteed  by 
that  Government  and  on  maturity  they  will  be  paid  in 
full.  Yet  if  sold  to-day  in  the  market,  these  bonds  would 
bring  perhaps  only  $400.  If  they  were  bought  as  a 
speculation,  then  the  value  is  only  $400,  but  as  an  in- 
vestment they  are  worth  $450.  And  the  family  that 
has  invested  liberally  in  these  bonds  and  can  hold  them 
until  they  are  paid  might  be  discouraged  by  a  shrink- 
age in  their  Assets  list  that  is  theoretical  rather  than 
real.  Other  bonds  change  in  value,  going  up  and  down, 
and  yet  may  still  be  steadily  good  investments.  The 
family  has  actually  saved  the  amount  invested,  not  the 
amount  the  securities  would  bring  if  sold,  and  it  is 
better  psychology  to  represent  the  savings  in  real  fig- 
ures. If  they  can  say:  "You  know  we  really  have  more, 
because  those  stocks  are  worth  more  than  we  paid  for 
them,"  that  is  rather  a  pleasant  state  of  things.  It  may 
not  be  true  the  next  time  the  Assets  list  is  made.  If, 
on  the  other  hand,  they  must  say:  "Those  stocks  have 
gone  down;  they  really  are  not  worth  now  what  we 
paid  for  them,"  there  is  nevertheless  the  cheering 
thought  that  before  the  time  comes  for  their  redemp- 
tion or  sale  they  may  have  risen  in  value  again.  When 
there  is  great  depreciation  that  is  apparently  perma- 
nent, the  change  from  cost  to  market  value  must  be 
made,  or  the  Assets  list  is  deceptive — and  the  family 


22  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

may  have  to  be  more  careful  as  to  the  securities  selected. 

Life  insurance  savings  are  represented  by  the  amount 
paid  in  premiums.  Strictly  their  cost  includes  interest 
on  the  money  paid  in  each  year,  but  as  there  is  no  such 
actual  payment  made,  it  is  better  not  to  show  this  in 
the  figures. 

The  value  of  real  estate  may  be  set  down  as  what  was 
paid  for  it,  or  where  it  has  definitely  risen  in  value, 
as  the  actual  market  value.  This  is  a  place  where  the 
family  may  legitimately  reckon  in  dollars  and  cents 
the  value  of  their  judgment  and  foresight. 

The  total  value  of  the  Inventory  may  be  added — 
indeed,  should  be,  not  only  so  that  the  family  may  real- 
ize how  much  money  it  has  invested  without  bringing  in 
interest,  but  also  so  that  the  value  of  one  year  may  show 
the  change  from  the  last  year.  If  the  family  has  chosen 
to  cut  down  the  cost  of  the  Inventory,  as  it  may  easily 
do  by  not  adding  enough  to  the  household  equipment  to 
make  up  for  the  depreciation  loss,  this  should  be  evident 
in  the  Assets.  These  may  not  increase  as  much  as  the 
family  had  hoped,  but  if  the  value  of  investments  bear- 
ing interest  has  increased  and  that  of  the  non-interest 
bearing  items  of  the  Inventory  has  decreased,  then  the 
family  is  in  a  better  situation  financially.  But  here, 
as  always,  all  figures  must  show  real  values,  so  far  as 
figures  can  be  made  to  do  so. 

Liabilities  can  easily  be  expressed  in  figures.     Money 


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24  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

debts,  large  and  small,  are  definite.  Where  accounts 
are  due  to  tradesmen,  these  should  not  be  included  un- 
less when  paid  the  amount  is  to  be  charged  to  the  old 
account.  Ordinarily  bills  for  December  purchases 
charge  to  the  January  account,  and  if  this  is  done  year 
after  year  the  accounts  show  12  months  each  year.  The 
business  house  must  wait  until  all  bills  incurred  in  De- 
cember (or  any  other  last  month  of  the  fiscal  year)  are 
in  before  they  can  close  the  books  for  the  year,  but 
there  seems  to  be  no  advantage  to  the  family  in  follow- 
ing such  a  procedure. 

A  mortgage  on  real  estate  owned  may  appear  in  Lia- 
bilities or  may  show  in  Assets,  being  deducted  from  the 
money  value  of  the  property  before  this  is  listed.  It 
makes  no  difference  which  method  is  chosen.  If  it 
appears  separately  the  state  of  the  family  finances  is 
given  in  greater  detail ;  if  it  is  shown  only  by  the  value 
assigned  the  property,  the  list  is  more  compact. 

Then  arises  the  question  of  the  period  of  time  for 
which  the  budget  should  be  made.  Many  think  it  easier 
to  begin  with  a  short  period — three  months,  let  us  say,  or 
even  a  single  month.  But  this  is  a  discouraging  method. 
Such  items  as  rent,  food  and  telephone  run  on  from 
month  to  month  with  the  same,  or  approximately  the 
same,  expenditure.  But  clothing  means  usually  a  large 
amount  in  one  month,  almost  none  in  another.  Coal  is 
bought  usually  to  best  advantage  in  large  amounts — 


WHEN  AND  HOW  TO  MAKE  IT      25 

often  the  year's  supply  at  one  time.  Insurance  is  nor- 
mally paid  in  a  yearly  or  two  semi-yearly  payments. 
Those  who  budget  from  month  to  month  may  easily  be 
discouraged  by  the  heavy  charges  of  one  month  out  of 
the  twelve.  The  family  income  is  thought  of  to  best 
advantage  in  terms  of  a  year,  and  the  budget  should  be 
made  for  the  full  year.  The  calendar  year  is  the  easiest 
to  choose,  in  many  ways,  though  for  those  who  are  on 
salary  and  whose  appointments  range  from  July  1  or 
September  1  there  may  be  an  advantage  in  making  the 
budget  year  start  from  that  date,  especially  if  the  in- 
come is  very  small.  Salaried  people  always  hope  for 
a  "raise,"  and  if  the  budget  is  for  January-December 
and  the  larger  salary  begins  in  September,  then  there 
is  a  delightful  surplus — any  surplus  is  delightful,  how- 
ever small ! — for  the  last  four  months  of  the  year.  A 
budget  that  goes  into  effect  January  1  is  undoubtedly 
best  for  most  people. 

The  budget  should  be  begun  at  least  several  weeks 
before  it  is  to  go  into  effect.  The  first  session  must 
have  a  good,  long,  free  evening — or  a  free  Sunday  after- 
noon— given  to  it.  Details  can  be  considered  and  dis- 
cussed in  odd  moments  after  the  general  outline  is 
made,  and  one  more  session  of  at  least  an  hour  is  needed 
to  put  the  budget  into  final  shape.  How  much  time  a 
given  family  or  individual  needs  must  depend  on  the 
definiteness  of  their  desires,  the  clearness  of  their  think- 


26  GETTING  YOUK  MONEY'S  WORTH 

ing  and  their  general  judgment ;  but  the  minimum  is  the 
time  mentioned  above.  The  budget  is  too  important  to 
be  done  in  a  hurried  spare  hour  or  two. 

Before  beginning  it  is  well  to  have  on  hand  the  form 
to  be  used  in  the  budget  and  accounts.  This  may  be 
adopted  later — at  any  time  before  the  budget  goes  into 
effect — but  time  is  saved  if  the  cards,  leaves  or  books 
are  ready.  The  discussion  as  to  the  best  form  is  given 
at  the  beginning  of  Chapter  VII.  Many  families  on 
small  incomes  have  worked  the  budget  by  an  envelope  or 
box  system,  distributing  into  these  as  weekly  or  monthly 
money  comes  in  the  share  allotted  to  each  heading.  This 
is  real  budgeting,  but  it  is  not  satisfactory  without  the 
long  plan  just  discussed.  Moreover,  it  leads  to  in- 
convenience in  borrowing  between  envelopes  or  boxes, 
and  it  makes  impossible  the  convenience  of  the  check- 
ing bank  account.  If  detailed  accounts  are  not  kept — 
and  if  they  are,  there  is  no  special  point  in  the  system — 
the  details  of  expenditure  escape  record  and  are  there- 
fore not  available  in  planning  future  expenditure.  The 
"system"  is  better  than  none,  but  it  will  hardly  con- 
tent for  long  the  intelligent  user  of  money. 

When  the  solemn  first  session  on  the  budget  begins, 
the  first  thing  to  be  faced  is  the  income.  To  those  whose 
income  is  from  salary,  from  an  allowance,  or  from  in- 
vestments   paying    dividends    regularly    (like   Govern- 


WHEN  AND  HOW  TO  MAKE  IT      27 

ment  bonds),  the  question  is  simple.  The  income  is 
known  in  advance.  For  those  whose  income  is  derived 
from  investments  not  sure  to  pay  regularly,  such  as  in- 
dustrial stocks,  it  is  always  the  part  of  wisdom  to  set 
aside  for  Savings  some  part  of  the  income  each  year,  to 
be  used  in  the  years  when  the  dividends  are  passed  or 
lessened.  Those  who  are  in  business  or  professional 
work  for  themselves  or  who  receive  part  or  all  their  in- 
come from  commissions  are  only  too  often  disheartened 
in  making  a  budget  because  they  cannot  count  on  a  defi- 
nite income.  But  this  group,  especially  when  the  in- 
come is  received  in  irregular  amounts  and  not  at  stated 
times,  need  the  budget  far  more  than  those  whose  weekly 
pay  envelope  or  monthly  check  is  steadily  of  the  same 
amount.  Their  income  should  be  reckoned  as  the  sum 
on  which  they  can  safely  count,  not  as  the  sum  they 
hope  to  receive  this  year.  If  they  can  safely  count  on 
$3,000  and  hope  for  $5,000,  the  budget  should  be  re- 
lentlessly made  for  $3,000.  Then  after  three  months 
or  six  months,  if  the  extra  $500  or  $1,000  has  come 
in,  they  can  revise  the  budget,  counting  only  on 
what  has  been  received,  not  on  the  possible  extra  money 
of  the  next  similar  period.  In  other  words,  their  only 
safety  is  to  plan  so  that  they  can  live  on  the  minimum, 
using  any  surplus  only  after  it  is  received  as  actual 
cash.     Mortgaging  the  future  is  a  dangerous  business, 


28  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

unless  of  course  it  is  done  with  good  judgment  in  the 
interests  of  future  gain.  The  expected  income  should 
be  carefully  recorded  on  the  form  chosen. 

Now  comes  the  very  important  question  of  the  form 
of  the  budget.  How  detailed  should  it  be  ?  Many  who 
advocate  the  budget  advise  beginners  to  make  very  gen- 
eral headings,  on  the  ground  that  classification  is  a 
difficult  art.  It  is,  and  for  that  reason  chiefly  this 
book  advocates  strongly  a  very  detailed  list  of  head- 
ings, since  with  such  a  list  the  classification  of  the 
great  mass  of  items  requires  no  thought  at  all.  To 
illustrate  this  point,  let  us  consider  the  general  head- 
ings frequently  advised. 

Food  Operating  Expenses 

Clothing  Higher  Life 

Shelter  Personal  Expenses 

Miscellaneous 

Where  does  the  dentist's  bill  go  ?  You  will  be  told  in 
Higher  Life — horrible  thought! — because  health  is  in- 
cluded there.  Where  does  the  new  side-board  go  ?  In 
Operating  Expenses,  or  in  Shelter?  Where  do  you 
charge  the  cost  of  the  railway  trip  to  grandmother's 
funeral?  Miscellaneous?  What  does  Miscellaneous 
mean,  anyway,  in  cost  accounting?  Or  Sundries,  or 
Minor  Expenses,  or  Personal  Expenses  ?  How  can  you 
control  the  expenditure  under  such  a  grab-bag  heading  ? 


WHEN  AND  HOW  TO  MAKE  IT      29 

But  look  at  the  detailed  list  suggested  here.  No  one 
family,  in  all  probability,  would  ever  need  all  these 
headings,  and  many  a  family  must  add  one  or  more 
of  its  own,  but  the  principle  of  this  is  "a  heading  for 
every  kind  of  thing  and  everything  under  its  own 
heading."  The  items  are  arranged  alphabetically  for 
convenience  in  use.  The  advantage  to  the  family  of 
arranging  them  in  classified  order  is  hard  to  see: 

BUDGET  AND  ACCOUNT  HEADINGS 
Subheads  for  Accounts  Only 
Allowances  (children) 
Automobile 
Care  of  House 

Outside 

Flowers 

Furnishings,  permanent 

Furnishings,  not  permanent 

Inside 
Clothing-Accessories 

Coats  and  Wraps 

Gowns 

Hats 

Jewelry 

Repair 

Shoes 

Underwear 
Debts 

Interest 
Education 
Entertainment 


30  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

Express,  Freight,  Parcel-Post 
Food 

Bread 

Dairy  Products 

Dry  Groceries 

Food  Outside  Home 

Fruit 

Ice 

Meat,  Fish,  Poultry 

Vegetable  Garden 

Vegetables 

Garbage  Disposal 
Fuel 

Gifts  (Church,  charity,  civic) 
Gifts  (Personal) 
Health 
Insurance 
Laundry 
Light 
Lost1 
Luxuries  1 
Man's  Expenditure 
Postage  (Letter) 

Professional  or  Business  Obligations 
Reading 
Recreation 
Rent 
Savings 
Service 
Stationery 
Taxes 

i  For  accounts  only. 


WHEN  AND  HOW  TO  MAKE  IT      31 

Telephone,  Telegram 

Toilet 

Transportation — Carfare 

Transportation — Other  than  Carfare 

Vacation  2 

Budget  and  Summary 
Income 


With  such  a  list  where  is  the  difficulty  of  classifica- 
tion? The  dentist's  bill  goes  under  Health,  the  new 
side-board  under  Care  of  House-Furnishings,  the  rail- 
way trip  under  Transportation-other  than  Carfare. 
There  is  no  Miscellaneous,  Sundries,  or  any  other 
catch-all  to  trap  the  unwary.  The  family  or  individ- 
ual who  does  not  need  all  these  headings  ignores  those 
that  are  unnecessary,  and  as  said  before,  some  families 
may  need  a  new  heading  or  two.  But  few  are  the  fami- 
lies who  cannot  find  within  this  list  good  headings  for 
all  their  expenditure.  There  may,  indeed,  be  some 
discussion  of  an  individual  item.  One  person,  for  ex- 
ample, charges  a  trunk  or  a  traveling  bag  to  Clothing- 
Accessories,  because  either  is  used  to  carry  clothing 
chiefly,  while  another  prefers  the  heading  Transpor- 
tation, because  either  is  used  only  for  traveling.  But 
such  differences  are  negligible,  so  long  as  the  individual 

2  Perhaps  for  accounts  only. 


32  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

is  consistent.  And  consistency  is  easy  in  the  account 
keeping  recommended  here,  because  it  takes  but  a  mo- 
ment to  look  back  to  see  what  one  decided  the  last  time 
such  an  expense  was  recorded. 

In  the  first  budget  session,  after  the  income  is  clearly 
noted  comes  consideration  of  this  list  of  headings..  As 
is  stated  at  the  head  of  the  list,  the  subheads  are  in- 
tended for  Accounts  only,  and  the  main  headings  alone 
need  be  considered  in  the  budget. 

Before  considering  them,  it  is  helpful  to  decide  to 
learn  to  think  in  percentages,  both  in  budgeting  and  in 
spending.  Eleven  cents  a  pound  for  string  beans  is 
"only  a  penny  more"  than  10  cents,  but  it  is  10% 
more,  which  is  worth  considering.  Ten  per  cent  of  the 
total  food  cost  for  the  year  is  a  tidy  little  sum.  Per- 
haps the  beans  at  11  cents  are  worth  more,  perhaps 
the  use  of  the  shopper's  time  and  energy  is  better  if  11 
cents  is  paid,  but  the  real  money  difference  should  be 
recognized.  If  the  rent  is  $50,  the  change  to  $60  may 
perhaps  be  met  without  difficulty.  It  is  only  $10  a 
month  more — but  it  is  also  20%.  The  habit  is 
one  easy  to  acquire,  one  indispensable  to  the  business 
man,  and  of  almost  equal  value  in  the  business  side  of 
the  household. 

Before  beginning  to  consider  items,  write  on  a  large 
sheet  the  headings  the  family  need,  arranging  the  sheet 
so  that  the  figures  will  be  in  columns,  easy  to  add.    Read 


WHEN  AND  HOW  TO  MAKE  IT      33 

over  Chapters  IV  and  V,  which  call  attention  to  points 
worth  considering  under  the  different  heads.  The 
problem  is  after  all  not  so  difficult  a  one  as  first  thought 
suggested.  In  an  ordinary  family  the  main  expenditures 
are  pretty  accurately  known.  If  a  vague  kind  of  bud- 
geting did  not  control  family  expenditures,  the  family 
would  be  in  debt  constantly.  Father  and  Mother  know 
about  what  they  can  afford  for  rent.  To  be  sure,  they 
may  decide  after  careful  study  of  the  family's  whole 
expenditure  that  they  are  spending  more  than  they  can 
afford  so  that  they '  can  change  to  advantage,  even 
with  the  expense  of  moving  counted  in.  But  they  be- 
gin with  Rent — or  its  equivalent  in  costs  for  an  owned 
house — and  go  on  naturally  to  Food.  Here  many  a 
family  begins  at  once  to  doubt  the  need  for  an  expendi- 
ture like  that  of  the  past.  "Our  food  costs  at  least 
$20  a  week.  I  wonder  if  we  couldn't  get  it  down  to 
$19  or  even  $18.50?  That  would  be  $52  or  $78  to  use 
somewhere  else."  But  the  decision  should  not  take 
long. 

Clothing  is  the  next  large  expenditure,  and  probably 
the  one  that  admits  of  the  most  variation  in  the  ordi- 
nary family.  A  fairly  generous  allowance — what  the 
family  ought  to  be  able  reasonably  to  have,  with  its  in- 
come and  circumstances — should  be  allowed  at  first. 
Alas !  in  most  cases  it  will  have  to  be  cut  down  later, 
in  the  interest  of  some  other  need  or  demand. 


34  GETTING  YOUK  MONEY'S  WORTH 

Having  provided  for  the  elementary  needs  for  the 
family,  decide  on  Savings.  Without  being  dogmatic,  one 
can  advise  any  normal  family  living  on  an  earned  in- 
come that  it  is  running  into  danger  if  it  spends  more 
than  25%  of  its  income  for  rent,  spends  more  than  20% 
for  clothing,  or  saves  (of  an  earned  income)  less  than 
10%.  At  this  point  of  the  budget  making,  check  up  to 
be  sure  that  you  are  within  these  limits,  and  if  you  are 
not,  see  if  readjustment  cannot  be  made  before  going 
further. 

Select  next  the  items  that  are  not  easily  controlled, 
if  at  all.  Insurance,  for  example,  cannot  be  changed  in 
amount  without  changing  the  amount  of  security  gained 
by  it.  The  income  tax  must  be  paid  in  full.  If  one  has 
a  telephone  in  the  house,  there  is  a  minimum  set  auto- 
matically, and  only  the  overtime  or  long-distance  calls 
can  be  controlled.  It  does  not  take  long  to  decide  what 
the  usual  expenditure  for  the  telephone  is,  and  if  later 
the  budget  must  be  pared  here  and  there,  perhaps  the 
minimum  can  be  changed.  The  difference  between  a 
single  wire  and* a  party  wire  looks  larger  on  the  budget 
than  it  does  on  the  monthly  bill.  Other  items  that  are 
easily  settled  may  be  chosen  in  order,  leaving  those  in 
which  the  margin  is  wider  for  later  decision.  Eeference 
may  be  made  to  the  notes  of  Chapters  IV  and  V,  which 
have  been  read  over  once  already.  It  is  easier  to  make 
all  items  in  dollars,  ignoring  cents. 


WHEN  AND  HOW  TO  MAKE  IT      35 

When  there  is  a  figure  opposite  each  item,  the  first 
test  comes.  The  addition  of  all  the  figures  will  in 
eight  cases  out  of  ten  make  a  larger  sum  than  the  in- 
come! That  is  a  natural  result  of  the  natural  desire 
to  have  a  little  more  than  the  income  will  buy — and 
perhaps  of  the  equally  natural  feeling  that  we  deserve 
to  have  it.  Now  comes  the  test  of  the  family  ideals,  of 
the  rank  of  importance  of  each  item.  Now  begins  the 
changing  from  sums  ending  in  0  or  5 — the  round 
numbers  so  easy  to  add — by  shaving  off  one  dollar  here, 
two  dollars  there,  three  dollars  somewhere  else.  Some- 
times much  larger  sums  must  be  taken  from  the  larger 
items.  The  two  that  are  oftenest  cut  down  after  the  first 
estimate  are  probably  Clothing  and  Care  of  House. 
House  furnishings  fall  under  the  latter  head,  and  per- 
haps that  new  side-board  would  swell  the  account  too 
much,  or  the  new  curtains  for  the  sitting-room  must 
wait — or  be  of  plain  marquisette,  made  at  home.  Cloth- 
ing can  be  extended  so  easily  that  it  offers  also  many 
possibilities  of  contraction.  Very  few  families  really 
wear  out  their  clothes,  and  few  are  willing  to  wear  them 
after  they  are  shabby  unless  the  reward  for  doing  so  is 
definite  and  understood;  Chapter  IV  offers  suggestions 
as  to  the  clothing  budget. 

It  is  at  the  point  where  a  general  decision  has  been 
reached  by  the  parents  that  the  children  are  usually 
called  in.     The  choices  that  have  been  discussed  are 


36  GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WOETH 

gone  over  with  them,  and  some  may  even  be  decided  by 
their  vote.  If  the  children  themselves  decide  for  chicken 
and  ice  cream  once  a  month  instead  of  once  a  week, 
they  will  eat  a  good  corn  chowder  cheerfully  on  Sun- 
day— and  enjoy  the  chicken  when  they  get  it  more  than 
ever  they  did  before. 

When  at  last  the  budget  is  cut  and  pruned  until  its 
sum  total  is  that  of  the  expected  income,  it  is  quite  prob- 
able that  the  family  will  be  more  dissatisfied  with  its 
income  than  it  ever  has  been  in  the  past.  Before  the 
budget  the  dissatisfaction  was  scattered  along  through 
the  weeks  and  days,  general,  but  not  acute.  Now  it  is 
concentrated,  and  may  become  actually  painful.  But  in 
compensation  the  whole  question  is  faced,  and  the 
limitations  are  accepted,  once  for  all.  There  are  only 
two  remedies — to  increase  the  income,  or  to  learn  how 
better  to  adjust  one's  desires  and  habits  to  the  present 
income.  The  second  method  can  be  used  to  some  ex- 
tent in  every  family.  Under  the  stress  of  the  European 
war  many  a  family  that  had  thought  itself  as  careful 
as  it  is  possib  e  to  be  in  expenditure,  even  families  who 
had  lived  by  a  wise  budget — many  such  families  learned 
to  be  content  with  a  lesser  expenditure  on  what  was 
practically  a  smaller  income,  reduced  by  the  rapid 
advance  of  prices.  It  was  the  desire  to  help  that  made 
the  reduction  possible.  Other  like  desires  can  be  culti- 
vated and  encouraged  until  they  become  as  imperative 


WHEN  AND   HOW  TO  MAKE  IT      37 

as  that  aroused  by  a  great  national  and  international 
crisis. 

Having  made  the  budget,  the  family  must  realize 
all  over  again  that  it  is  made  for  them,  not  they  made 
for  it.  It  can  be  readjusted  at  any  time,  but  always 
"with  the  condition  that  when  money  is  added  to  one 
item,  an  equal  amount  must  be  subtracted  somewhere 
else.  There  was  never  a  better  teacher  than  the  budget 
for  the  lesson  that  "you  cannot  eat  your  cake  and  have 
it  too."  The  same  money  will  not  buy  two  different 
things.  This  question  of  readjustment  is  dealt  with 
in  Chapter  VIII. 

And  even  without  formal  readjustment  the  budget 
will  never,  without  absurd  contortions  of  accounts  and 
expenditures  toward  the  end  of  the  year,  show  an  exact 
balance  under  each  heading  with  the  same  heading  of 
the  accounts.  Kent,  Insurance — a  few  items  of  this 
kind  may  show  on  the  yearly  summary  the  exact  amount 
allotted  to  them  a  year  before,  but  very  few  items  have 
such  rigidity.  The  normal  result  shows  a  small  excess 
in  expenditure  in  some  items,  a  small  surplus  in  others. 
If  the  sum  total  does  not  exceed  the  income,  and  if  the 
Savings  item  has  had  its  due  share,  then  the  family 
may  well  feel  triumphant  as  it  closes  one  year  and 
plans  an  even  wiser  use  of  resources  for  the  next. 

The  budget  as  accepted  should  be  written  on  the 
card  or  leaf,  or  in  the  book,  chosen  for  the  accounts,  a 


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40  GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WOETH 

second  column  being  left  blank  for  the  figures  of  ex- 
penditure, to  be  filled  in  at  the  end  of  the  year.  This 
Budget-Summary  is  useful  for  the  second  year  of  bud- 
get keeping,  and  grows  increasingly  valuable  each  year, 
as  the  series  grows.  After  five  years  a  careful  com- 
parison of  these  will  offer  some  interesting  facts.  Prob- 
ably it  will  be  found  that  in  the  majority  of  items  the 
variation  is  sometimes  an  excess,  sometimes  a  surplus, 
while  in  others  every  year  shows  either  one  or  the 
other.  In  the  latter  case  the  budget  should  of  course 
be  changed,  in  the  interests  of  honesty.  If  the  family 
plans  year  after  year  to  spend  a  certain  amount  on 
the  telephone,  for  example,  and  as  regularly  exceeds 
that  amount,  then  the  plan  must  be  changed.  To  say: 
"I  only  allow  myself  $50  a  year  for  amusement,"  when 
an  investigation  would  at  once  disclose  that  year  after 
year  shows  an  expenditure  of  $57,  $59,  or  $60  is  lying 
to  oneself,  and  a  petty  sort  of  lying  at  that.  One  does 
not  juggle  figures  that  express  ideals. 


IV 

THE  BIG  ITEMS 

The  money  spent  for  food,  clothing  and  the  honse — 
under  the  two  headings  of  Rent  and  Care  of  House — 
takes  the  bulk  of  the  money  of  any  but  a  very  unusual 
budget.  The  item  of  Service  is  very  heavy  in  some 
families,  but  these  are  comparatively  few,  since  the 
overwhelming  majority  of  families  have  no  regular  em- 
ployee in  the  household.  Those  who  do,  and  especially 
those  who  have  two  or  more,  find  the  Service  item 
ranking  near  that  of  Rent,  and  also  increasing  the 
budget  for  Food,  except  where  household  service  has 
been  put  on  the  industrial  basis  as  described  in  the  next 
chapter  under  the  heading  Service. 

Rent.  The  family  choice  of  a  home  is  to  be  de- 
termined first  by  the  conditions  that  make  for  health, 
next  by  its  convenience  for  the  members  of  the  family 
who  work  outside  the  home,  for  the  school-children,  or 
for  both,  and  last  by  the  social  values.  If  carfare  must 
be  paid  to  get  to  school  or  work,  that  is  really  part  of 
the  cost  of  rent,  although  in  household  accounting  it  is 
satisfactory  to  charge  the  expenditure  to  Transporta- 
tion-Carfare.    The  expense  must,  however,  be  kept  in 

41 


42  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

mind  in  considering  the  real  cost  of  the  family  quarters. 

If  the  house  is  owned,  the  charges  here  are  for  taxes, 
insurance,  assessments  and  repairs.  Strictly  speaking, 
there  should  be  charged  here  and  on  the  income  card 
(balancing  each  other)  the  interest  on  the  investment. 
This  may  be  done  at  the  end  of  the  year  in  one  sum. 
Since  the  value  of  the  house  appears  among  Assets,  it 
is  well  to  show  that  there  is  a  real  income  from  it, 
although  no  money  is  handled.  It  is  also  well  to  realize 
afresh  from  time  to  time  the  real  cost  of  the  use  of  the 
house.  If  the  house  is  rented  the  matter  of  charging  is 
simple.  The  terms  of  the  lease  must  be  carefully 
studied  to  see  what  money  obligations  may  arise,  as 
well  as  for  other  reasons.  Besides  the  regular  house 
charges  this  heading  may  include  hotel  rooms,  though 
in  many  cases  these  are  chargeable  to  Eecreation,  Busi- 
ness or  Professional  Obligations  or  Vacation. 

Those  who  are  boarding  often  think  it  sufficient  to 
have  a  single  heading  for  Rent  and  Food,  but  this  is 
unwise,  as  even  in  the  same  house  one  can  increase 
or  decrease  the  cost  of  the  room  by  changing  from  one 
to  another,  while  the  food  charge  remains  stationary. 

Food.  There  is  a  minimum  of  money  cost  to  the 
food  that  will  keep  any  given  family  adequately  nour- 
ished, but  it  is  an  imaginary  family  that  could  be  fed 
at  this  minimum  cost.  Likes  and  dislikes  in  food  must 
be  regarded.     No  normal  human  being  wants  to  eat 


THE  BIG  ITEMS  43 

"calories"  or  "food  values."  He  wants  to  eat  food  and 
food  that  lie  enjoys.  Food  that  is  "good  for  you"  never- 
theless does  not  afford  you  nourishment  unless  you  eat 
it.  The  wise  homemaker  studies  ways  of  getting  the 
members  of  her  family  to  like  both  food  that  is  "good 
for  them"  and  food  that  offers  as  much  nutrition  for 
the  same  cost  as  some  more  costly  food  already  liked. 
There  are  many  books  to  help  her.  But  the  experienced 
homemaker  who  studies  the  problem  has  little  difficulty 
in  deciding  as  to  the  sum  she  must  have  to  provide  food 
that  will  meet  both  the  family  needs  and  the  family 
approval.  As  she  studies  her  small  but  important 
problems  of  cost  accounting  she  learns  how  that  sum 
can  be  lessened,  and  offers  the  family  such  choices  as 
the  chicken-and-ice-cream  one  referred  to  elsewhere. 

In  the  list  of  headings  there  are  provided  for  the 
accounts  a  number  of  subheads  under  Food.  These  are 
of  course  not  considered  for  the  budget  and  in  many  a 
family  they  may  not  be  needed  at  all.  But  usually  it 
is  helpful  to  keep  at  least  a  few  of  them  for  a  year,  since 
thus  one  can  study  the  relation  of  expense  to  nutrition. 
In  a  family  with  several  growing  boys  and  one  or  two 
men  the  Meat,  Poultry,  Fish  heading  may  profit  by 
further  division,  since  the  meat  cost  is  apt  to  rise 
appallingly  high.  Where  there  are  a  number  of  young 
children,  Dairy  Products  must  surely  get  its  full  share. 
Ice  is  often  ignored  in  food  costs,  but  may,  especially 


44  GETTING  YOUB  MONEY'S  WORTH 

for  a  family  that  lives  in  a  city  for  the  greater  part  of 
the  summer,  be  no  mean  addition  to  food  expenditure. 
"Food  Outside  Home"  is  especially  worth  while  in  a 
large  city,  where  lunches  or  tea  away  from  home  seem 
a  simple  matter  until  one  sees  their  cost  in  a  year. 
Candy  and  soft  drinks  are  well  classed  here.  Some- 
times they  are  put  under  Recreation,  hut  it  seems  wiser 
to  classify  all  foods  together,  since  all  represent  nourish- 
ment, even  if  some  are  not  eaten  with  that  in  mind. 
Cigars,  cigarettes,  tobacco,  on  the  other  hand,  have  no 
nutritive  value,  and  should  certainly  be  paid  for  by 
Recreation. 

The  Vegetable  Garden  often  justifies  a  separate  head- 
ing. It  is  not  always  easy  to  keep  account  of  what 
comes  from  it,  but  a  daily  jotting  down  in  a  special  note 
book  or  on  sheets  will  enable  the  housekeeper  at  the  end 
of  the  season  to  get  a  general  idea  whether  the  garden 
paid  in  money  as  well  as  in  the  freshness  of  the  product. 
Putting  the  cost  of  plowing  or  other  paid  work  in  the 
garden  under  the  general  heading  Service  is  bad  account- 
ing. If  none  of  the  family  work  in  the  garden,  it  may 
well  be  that  the  cost  of  labor  sends  the  cost  of  the 
vegetables  above  the  regular  market  price.  Even  so  this 
may  be  advisable,  since  the  vegetables  are  better,  but  the 
family  should  know  what  they  are  paying  for. 

The  whole  question  of  canning  and  preserving  at  home 
needs  the  same  careful  study.     The  housewife  need  not 


THE  BIG  ITEMS  45 

reckon  the  labor  cost  at  so  much  per  hour,  but  if  she 
finds  that  the  total  cost — materials,  cans  and  rubbers, 
canning  equipment,  fuel,  storage,  loss  and  breakage — 
is  greater  than  the  money  cost  of  the  commercial  prod- 
uct of  equal  weight,  then  she  must  consider  carefully 
whether  the  quality  of  her  own  product  is  enough  bet- 
ter to  warrant  the  extra  money  plus  her  labor.  It  is 
not  necessarily  economy  to  do  home  canning  and  pre- 
serving. The  market  conditions  and  the  home  condi- 
tions both  affect  the  question.  The  study  of  such  a 
problem  involves  budgeting  time  and  energy  as  well  as 
money. 

Clothing.  This  is  one  of  the  most  difficult  items 
of  the  budget,  not  in  making  a  decision  as  to  the  amount 
to  be  spent,  but  in  using  the  amount  to  the  best  advan- 
tage. The  primary  purpose  of  clothing  is  undoubtedly 
to  protect  the  body,  a  matter  of  health.  But  this  pur- 
pose is  almost  obscured  by  the  two  secondary  purposes 
that  count  most  with  all  of  us,  that  of  adornment  and 
that  of  conforming  to  the  social  usage  of  our  group.  In 
America  that  group  is  not  a  class,  as  in  many  of  the 
older  countries,  but  the  people  we  wish  most  of  all  to 
be  like.  Many  a  girl  with  a  small  income,  many  a 
clerk  on  a  small  salary,  give  the  same  general  effect 
when  met  on  the  street  as  the  daughter  or  son  of  the 
multi-millionaire.  Their  variety  of  clothing  cannot  be 
as  great,  but  their  standard  of  style  and  even  of  quality 


46  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

is  the  same.  Undoubtedly  this  leads  many  times  to 
real  and  serious  extravagance  on  the  part  of  those — 
especially  the  young — of  small  income,  since  they  sac- 
rifice health  and  family  or  social  obligations  to  the  desire 
to  be  "well  dressed."  On  the  other  hand,  the  desire  to 
look  well  is  one  of  the  elements  of  progress,  and  any 
attempt  to  urge  young  or  middle-aged  or  old  to  dress 
plainly  at  a  low  cost  without  regard  to  effect  would 
be  not  only  ineffectual  but  reactionary. 

The  ideal  is  a  right  one — to  be  "well  dressed."  The 
trouble  is  with  the  individual  interpretation.  To  be 
well  dressed  is  to  be  suitably  dressed  for  the  occasion, 
in  clothing  that  is  becoming  in  color  and  line  and  good 
in  texture,  but  more  than  this,  it  is  also  to  be  dressed 
without  deception,  without  the  attempt  to  make  others 
think  that  our  incomes  are  larger  than  they  are.  It  is 
the  temptation  to  violate  this  last  rule  that  brings  most 
of  the  trouble.  The  average  American  is  constantly 
tempted  to  a  foolish  sort  of  lying  through  outward  de- 
tails, tempted  to  appear  richer  or  more  powerful  than 
he  or  she  actually  is.  This  falsifying  is  often  quite 
or  partially  unconscious.  It  is  certainly  not  often  faced 
and  accepted.  One  of  the  great  values  of  the  budget  is 
that  it  almost  forces  one  to  honesty  in  the  matter. 

But  when  the  question  has  been  settled  and  the  sum 
of  money  to  be  spent  is  known,  difficulties  are  not  over. 
In  the  first  place,   the  sum  should  be  divided  fairly 


THE  BIG  ITEMS  47 

among  the  different  members  of  the  family,  so  that  the 
account  may  be  kept  separately  for  each.  If  the  school- 
girl is  to  have  her  silk  stockings  and  the  school-boy  his 
silk  shirts  at  the  expense  of  Mother's  winter  coat  or 
Father's  summer  suit,  the  money  is  being  used  ex- 
travagantly, and  the  children  are  being  badly  trained. 

Here  also,  in  keeping  accounts,  it  is  of  great  im- 
portance to  use  the  subheadings.  They  may  seem  un- 
necessarily detailed,  but  they  will  be  found  very  help- 
ful, especially  after  three  or  four  years.  Then  the  card 
or  the  loose  leaf  (strongly  urged  in  Chapter  VII)  will 
show  at  a  glance  the  range  of  expenditure  from  year  to 
year.  Most  people  who  have  not  kept  such  accounts 
decide  at  first  sight  that  some  of  the  subheads  are  un- 
necessary. " Jewelry?  I  never  buy  jewelry  for  my- 
self." This  has  a  virtuous  ring.  The  obvious  answer 
is :  "Do  you  never  break  a  watch  crystal  or  have  your 
watch  cleaned  ?  Never  buy  a  hat  pin  or  cuff  links  or  a 
collar  stud?"  And  the  less  obvious  one  is:  aWhy 
should  you  not,  if  you  wish  ?  If  you  prefer  the  per- 
manency of  a  topaz  brooch  or  gold  shirt  studs  to  the 
vanishing  attractiveness  of  a  more  expensive  silk  or 
serge,  why  should  you  not  indulge  in  the  jewelry?  If 
you  provide  for  your  actual  needs'  in  clothing,  it  is  for 
you  to  choose  what  will  in  the  end  give  you  the  most 
pleasure." 

Clothing-Accessories  puzzles  many  people.     It  might 


48  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

perhaps  be  called  Miscellanies  except  that  that  word 
suggests  an  idea  that  is  taboo  in  good  accounting.  An 
umbrella  is  an  accessory,  a  bathrobe,  a  belt,  gloves. 
Stockings  can  be  put  here  or  with  Clothing-Shoes,  to 
show  what  dressing  the  feet  costs.  Materials  for  mend- 
ing and  sewing  naturally  fall  here,  the  item  Repair 
being  kept  for  the  larger  charges  of  remaking  or,  if  it 
is  put  here  instead  of  under  Laundry,  of  dry  cleaning. 
In  considering  clothing  expenditure  the  first  con- 
sideration in  judging  values  is  the  fact  that  the  net 
cost  of  clothing  is  the  first  cost  plus  care  and  repair, 
divided  by  the  amount  of  wear.  In  other  words,  the 
undergarment  of  fine  material  trimmed  with  delicate 
lace  whose  first  cost  is  "only  $1  more"  (probably  50%) 
must  be  laundered  with  such  care  that  its  cost  is  thereby 
much  increased,  and  even  then  cannot  be  worn  as  many 
days  as  the  one  that  cost  $1  less.  This  is  not  to  say 
that  the  daintier  garment  may  not  be  justified,  but  only 
that  its  actual  cost  should  be  recognized.  If  it  is,  it 
may  be  worth  to  the  owner  the  making  for  herself  or 
the  laundering  by  herself  that  will  lengthen  its  life  and 
make  the  cost  per  day  little  or  no  greater  than  that  of 
the  sturdier  garment.  The  suit  or  gown  that  will  clean 
well  has  a  longer  life  before  it  than  the  one  that  will 
not  stand  cleaning.  The  garment  of  such  style  and 
quality  that  it  will  be  good  to  look  at  through  two  or 
three  seasons  is  better  than  the  garment  that  will  last 


THE  BIG  ITEMS  49 

but  a  single  season.  If  the  first  costs  three  times  the 
last,  and  the  extra  amount  is  paid  for  quality  and  good 
construction,  the  garment  is  well  worth  it,  since  the 
wearer  will  he  better  dressed  all  the  three  seasons  than 
he  or  she  could  ever  be  in  the  cheaper  material  and 
style. 

The  daily  care  of  the  clothing  worn  extends  the  cloth- 
ing income  in  a  surprising  way.  Such  care  means  that 
outer  garments  are  properly  brushed,  and  hung  smooth 
on  hangers — in  free  air  until  all  dampness  has  evap- 
orated and  then  in  a  well-arranged  closet,  where  they 
are  not  crushed  or  wrinkled.  It  means  also  that  they  are 
pressed  whenever  they  need  it,  for  tailored  garments, 
once  in  a  while  by  a  tailor.  It  means  that  the  least 
repair  is  made  when  it  is  first  noticed — a  hook  or  a 
button  made  secure,  a  rip  sewed  up,  a  small  hole  darned. 
It  means  that  a  spot  is  removed  as  soon  as  it  is  seen, 
and  that  for  a  woman  collars  and  cuffs  that  can  be 
laundered  are  kept  constantly  clean  and  smooth.  For 
undergarments  it  means  the  same  care  in  mending  and 
also  that  these  are  never  so  soiled  before  laundering  that 
much  rubbing  is  needed  to  remove  the  soil.  If  the 
garments  are  mended  before  sending  to  the  laundry,  the 
repair  is  almost  invariably  less,  and  they  should  never 
be  so  soiled  that  they  are  objectionable  to  handle  in 
mending.  The  habit  of  putting  in  or  on  the  mending 
basket  or  table  any  garment  as  soon  as  it  is  seen  to 


50  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

need  repair,  when  there  is  not  at  the  moment  time  to 
mend  it,  helps  to  ensure  the  mending  before  the  next 
wearing. 

Silk  undergarments  and  silk  stockings — any  silk  com- 
ing in  constant  contact  with  the  body — should  be  washed 
after  every  wearing,  otherwise  the  body  soil  will  in 
some  degree  rot  the  silk.  If  this  rule  is  observed  an 
astonishing  amount  of  wear  can  be  got  out  of  a  pair  of 
good  silk  stockings  or  socks.  Why  not  double  the  wear 
on  either  of  these  by  the  simple  process  of  washing  them 
out  each  night  ?  All  stockings  need  frequent  washing, 
and  should  be  mended  before  they  are  washed.  If  both 
these  things  are  done,  there  will  never  be  great  gaping 
holes  to  darn.  By  the  time  the  stockings  reach  that 
stage  they  are  ready  to  go  to  pieces. 

Shoes  should  be  kept  cleaned  and  polished  or  treated 
with  whatever  preserves  best  the  material  of  which 
they  are  made,  and  shoe  trees  should  be  put  in  them 
the  moment  the  shoes  are  taken  off.  When  rubber  heels 
wear  down  or  leather  heels  wear  off  or  grow  crooked, 
they  should  be  repaired  or  straightened.  Shoes  of  good" 
material  of  course  pay  best,  and  if  the  sole  wears  out 
while  the  uppers  are  still  good — as  will  happen  with 
most  people  who  walk  on  pavements — half-soling  will 
be  a  justified  economy. 

This  is  not  a  book  on  the  care  of  clothing,  but  it 
is  impossible  to  write  adequately  of  a  budget  for  cloth 


THE  BIG  ITEMS  51 

ing  without  pointing  out  how  to  ensure  adequate  return 
for  the  money  spent. 

For  the  girls  and  women  who  enjoy  sewing  and  who 
have  the  time  for  it,  the  money  for  clothes  can  be 
stretched  by  making  collars,  and  other  accessories  or 
whole  garments  at  home.  Many  attractive  trimmings 
can  be  made  at  small  cost.  The  woman  who  dislikes 
sewing  and  finds  it  a  nervous  strain  should  not  attempt 
such  work,  and  frequently  it  is  a  mistake  for  a  woman 
who  likes  it  to  do  much  of  it — when,  for  example,  she  is 
engaged  all  day  outside  the  home  in  work  that  tires  the 
eyes.  There  is  no  more  reason  why  the  woman  who 
earns  her  own  living  should  make  her  own  clothes  than 
there  is  why  the  man  should  make  his.  Usually,  of 
course,  she  can  do  a  little  work  of  this  kind  and  he, 
because  of  the  nature  of  men's  clothing,  cannot  make  any 
of  his.  But  if  a  woman  keeps  within  her  clothing  budget 
and  never  touches  a  needle  except  for  mending,  she  ful- 
fills her  obligation.  If  she  has  less  dainty  clothing  or 
less  of  it  than  her  fellow  worker  who  likes  to  make 
underclothes  and  blouses  and  summer  frocks,  that  is  her 
affair. 

There  is  one  further  point  that  needs  consideration, 
and  that  is  the  amount  of  money  that  is  tied  up  in  cloth- 
ing at  any  one  time.  The  greater  number  of  people  have 
hanging  in  their  closets  or  lying  in  their  drawers  partly 
worn  garments  that  are  "too  good  to  give  away"  and 


4o^;>f 


52  GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WOKTH 

yet  in  practice  prove  usually  too  poor  to  use.  As  one 
sees  that  undergarments,  for  example,  are  wearing  out, 
one  buys  a  few  new  ones.  "I  need  new  nightgowns." 
There  are,  say,  six  nightgowns  in  their  proper  drawer, 
of  which  three  show  distinct  signs  of  wear.  Two  more 
are  bought  and  put  in  the  drawer,  and  then  there  are 
eight  to  be  worn  as  they  are  needed.  The  three  that 
gave  warning  are  worn  sometimes,  but  usually  not  as 
often  as  the  others,  and  in  consequence  are  still  in  the 
drawer  after  another  six  months  or  a  year.  Some- 
times the  same  result  is  brought  about  by  the  purchase 
of  a  real  bargain  in  nightgowns.  This  is  an  economy  in 
itself,  but  results  in  a  nightgown  collection  representing 
$16  instead  of  $12.  There  is  a  simple  way  of  avoiding 
this  difficulty  without  failing  to  be  forehanded.  Set 
a  limit  to  the  number  of  any  given  article  that  should 
be  in  wear  at  one  time,  and  when  the  new  articles  are 
bought,  put  them  in  a  storage  drawer  until  those  an 
actually  worn  out  that  are  "almost  gone."  It  is  ofte: 
surprising  how  long  a  time  that  will  take.  As  each 
garment  is  discarded,  replace  it  by  one  from  the  stor- 
age collection. 

The  same  process  should  be  used  with  suits,  wraps 
and  shoes.  It  is  well  to  have  a  reserve  of  something 
that  cannot  be  spoiled  by  rough  wear,  for  some  emer- 
gency that  may  arise,  but  otherwise  what  cannot  be 
worn  with  fair  frequency  or  made  over,  should  be  dis- 


THE  BIG  ITEMS  53 

posed  of.  If  a  shabby  suit  or  a  dress  is  worn  only 
once  or  twice  a  year,  it  does  not  justify  house-room, 
especially  when  it  will  meet  a  great  need  of  some  one 
less  fortunate. 

It  is  not  necessary  in  order  to  make  a  clothing  budget, 
but  it  is  most  helpful  to  make  a  complete  inventory  of 
one's  own  clothing,  classified  minutely,  to  set  down  the 
original  cost,  and  to  add  up  the  sum.  Most  people  have 
a  greater  amount  of  money  than  they  realize  tied  up  in 
this  way.  A  very  helpful  thing  is  to  have  columns  after 
the  name  of  each  item.  In  one  column  goes  the  number 
one  actually  has,  in  another  the  ideal  number  for  one's 
needs,  in  a  third,  fourth  and  fifth  the  number  one  needs 
to  buy  every  year,  every  other  year  and  "once  in  a 
while"  in  order  to  keep  up  the  ideal  number.  Other 
columns  give  the  cost  of  what  one  has,  the  yearly,  bi- 
yearly  and  occasional  cost  of  what  is  to  be  bought  to  keep 
up  the  number.  The  last  three  columns  will  give  the 
yearly  clothing  cost — by  adding  the  sum  for  every 
year,  half  the  sum  for  every  other  year,  and  a  third 
of  the  "once  in  a  while." 

The  following  list  shows  the  three  columns  of  cloth- 
ing needed,  as  worked  out  in  1917  by  students  in  the 
School  of  Household  Science  and  Arts  of  Pratt  Insti- 
tute who  were  preparing  to  teach  dressmaking,  milli- 
nery, and  kindred  subjects  the  following  year.  This 
out  of  date  list  is  given  because  it  is  an  excellent  illus- 


54 


GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 


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THE  BIG  ITEMS  55 

tration  of  how  easily  readjustment  may  be  made.  To 
revise  this  list  in  price  would  have  meant  many  changes 
in  1919,  but  not  so  many  in  1921.  It  is  to  be  hoped, 
however,  that  the  teacher  had  her  salary  raised  soon ! 

Such  a  thorough  going  over  is  especially  helpful  in 
the  planning  of  outer  clothing.  Men  have  less  difficulty 
in  this  matter,  but  women  or  girls  only  too  frequently 
find  themselves  without  just  the  right  dress  for  a  given 
occasion,  though  they  seem  to  have  plenty  of  dresses 
hanging  in  the  closet.  Planning  dresses  by  types  will 
avoid  this,  and  make  provision  for  every  social  occasion 
one  is  likely  to  be  called  on  to  share.  Fire  insurance  and 
burglar  insurance  on  Clothing  makes  an  inventory  of 
some  sort  almost  necessary.  Insurance  is  taken  usually 
in  one  sum  to  cover  household  equipment  and  clothing, 
and  the  cost  of  carrying  it  should  be  divided  in  right 
proportion  between  Care  of  House  and  Clothing-Ac- 
cessories. 

The  variation  in  value-for-cost  in  the  Clothing  budget 
is  evidently  the  greatest  among  the  budget  items.  And 
since  the  right  or  the  pleasing  clothing  makes  a  great 
difference  in  the  comfort  of  most  people,  the  question 
merits  much  careful  study. 

Care  of  House.  The  subheads  provided  for  this 
item  are  rarely  all  needed.  "Outside"  is  necessary  only 
where  there  are  grounds  enough  about  the  house  to  mean 
a  possibility  of  considerable  expenditure.     Sidewalks  to 


56  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WOETH 

be  cleaned,  flowers  to  be  planted  and  weeded,  shrubs 
to  be  trimmed — if  this  is  all  or  most  of  it  done  by  mem- 
bers of  the  family  or  regular  employees,  the  heading 
is  not  needed.  If  the  house  is  owned,  the  painting, 
shingling  and  other  outside  repairs  to  the  house  itself 
are  of  course  part  of  Rent.  If  "Outside"  is  not  used, 
"Inside"  can  be  omitted,  and  the  charges  for  general 
cleaning  materials  set  down  to  Care  of  House  generally, 
without  subheading. 

Care  of  House-Furnishings,  without  the  distinguish- 
ing subheads,  is  usually  sufficient,  but  when  a  house  is 
being  furnished  or  refurnished  the  subheads  may  prove 
valuable.  This  subdivision  of  Care  of  the  House  is 
one  that  is  often  called  on  to  contribute  to  some  other 
item  of  the  budget  that  demands  an  excess.  After  all, 
a  new  dining  table  can  wait  until  next  year,  slip-covers 
of  cretonne  made  at  home  can  cover  worn  upholstery,  and 
the  hall  rug  can  be  mended  or  even  dispensed  with 
altogether.  Furnishings  are  a  sort  of  lasting  luxury, 
and  the  acquisition  of  a  longed-for  bit  probably  gives 
the  family  a  greater  feeling  of  luxury  than  any  other 
single  expenditure — unless  they  buy  a  motor-car.  On 
the  other  hand,  it  is  easy  to  spend  a  goodly  sum  in  a 
year  on  what  some  call  doo-dads,  little  trifles  that  are 
amusing  when  one  sees  them  for  sale,  amuse  the  family 
when  they  are  taken  home,  clutter  up  the  house,  and  give 
no  lasting  pleasure. 


THE  BIG  ITEMS  57 

If  fire  insurance  and  burglar  insurance  on  furnishings 
are  charged  here,  that  will  show  up  more  clearly  the 
full  cost  of  expensive  equipment. 

Flowers.  This  subhead  is  needed  only  when  keep- 
ing fresh  flowers  or  growing  plants  as  part  of  the  adorn- 
ment of  the  home  is  a  habit  leading  to  an  unexpected 
amount  of  outgo.  A  quarter  at  a  time  means  many 
dollars  a  year  if  it  is  spent  often  enough.  If  this  bud- 
get item  is  regularly  cut  down  every  year,  there  is 
something  wrong  with  the  planning,  but  if  it  is  hit 
hard  sometimes,  that  is  only  in  the  course  of  nature  in 
family  life. 


V 

THE  LESSER  ITEMS 

Allowances  (children).  Another  chapter  deals  with 
the  advisability  of  this  heading.  As  this  is  definitely 
budgeted,  the  recording  on  the  accounts  is  simple,  and 
it  is  done  in  detail  only  to  keep  check  on  actual  pay- 
ments. 

Automobile.  This  item  may  easily  be  a  very  heavy 
one.  Only  a  careful  accounting  will  enable  the  family 
to  be  honest  about  it.  Of  course  if  the  car  is  kept  partly 
for  business  or  professional  reasons,  the  due  amount  for 
that  must  be  charged  to  business  or  profession.  That 
due  amount  should  include  not  only  all  current  charges 
for  repairs,  gasoline,  oil,  garage  charges  (or  expense  of 
garage  if  owned  or  rented  with  house),  insurance, 
license,  purchase  and  repair  of  accessories,  and  the  rest, 
but  should  include  each  year  a  sum  set  aside  for  the 
purchase  of  the  new  car  that  is  to  follow  this  one.  If 
a  chauffeur  is  employed,  his  wages  and  other  expenses 
incurred  for  him  should  be  charged  here  rather  than  to 
Service,  although  if  he  renders  other  service  in  house 
or  garden  that  would  otherwise  be  paid  for,  that  amount 
should  be  duly  deducted.     Keeping  the  real  costs  of  an 

58 


THE  LESSER  ITEMS  59 

automobile  may  be  a  task  for  a  skilled  accountant,  but 
any  family  that  is  determined  to  be  honest  about  it  can 
keep  an  account  that  tells  all  they  need  to  know. 

Debts.  This  item  explains  itself.  For  convenience 
Debts  and  Debts-Interest  should  go  on  separate  cards. 
Payment  on  the  first  really  represents  Savings,  as  by 
reducing  debt  one  increases  the  balance  between  assets 
and  liabilities.  Payment  of  interest  is  a  current  ex- 
penditure, to  be  provided  for  like  any  other  necessity. 
It  is  put  here  only  if  the  money  owed  is  for  general 
purposes.  If  it  was  borrowed  to  buy  an  automobile,  the 
interest  should  be  charged  to  that  heading.  If  the  debt 
is  a  mortgage  on  the  house  one  lives  in,  the  interest  is 
of  course  charged  to  Rent.  In  a  similar  way  interest  on 
money  borrowed  for  Education  is  charged  to  that  item, 
and  that  on  money  borrowed  for  investment  charged 
to  the  proper  investment  account. 

Education.  It  is  simple  to  include  here  all  school 
and  lesson  charges,  whether  for  tuition  or  supplies.  It 
is  less  simple  to  decide  as  to  lectures,  music  and  books, 
since  these  are  often  recreation  as  well  as  education. 
The  heading  Reading  is  provided  to  take  care  of  all 
papers,  magazines  and  books  of  a  general  nature. 
Whether  a  given  lecture  or  concert  should  be  charged 
here  or  to  Recreation  or  half  to  each,  must  be  left  to 
the  individual  to  decide.  Where  a  child's  allowance 
covers  Recreation,  the  child  should  never  be  forced  or 


60  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

even  urged  by  father  or  mother  to  spend  Recreation 
money  on  what  seems  to  the  child  educational  only ;  that 
is,  to  what  he  would  not  himself  choose  as  amusement. 

Entertainment.  It  might  be  possible  to  do  fairly 
accurate  cost  accounting  as  to  the  expense  of  entertain- 
ing one's  friends  as  house  guests  or  for  a  meal.  One 
could,  for  example,  reckon  the  life  of  sheets  and  towels 
and  the  cost  per  day  of  the  use  of  each,  and  charge  ac- 
cordingly to  Entertainment  the  wear  and  tear  caused 
by  Aunt  Mary  when  she  stayed  two  nights.  It  might 
be  harder  to  compute  the  "depreciation  charge"  on  fur- 
niture— say  the  dining  room  chair  she  sat  in — but  it 
would  be  easy  to  get  a  fairly  accurate  statement  of  the 
cost  of  food.  And  it  would  not  be  difficult  to  strike 
an  average  and  know  what  it  costs,  in  general,  to  have 
guests. 

But  would  home  be  worth  having  if  one  took  this 
point  of  view  about  friends  and  associates  %  The  tra- 
dition of  hospitality  that  we  cherish  from  the  distant 
past  would  become  only  a  painful  memory.  We  do  not 
pay  to  entertain  our  friends  at  home:  we  offer  them 
what  we  have  as  being  theirs.  "My  house  is  yours"  is 
hospitality.  "My  house  costs  me  $2,300  a  year,  of 
which  $1.85  is  charged  up  to  your  day  here,"  could 
hardly  produce  happiness  on  either  side,  even  if  the 
words  were  not  spoken  aloud.  The  Eood  allowance  in- 
cludes the  cost  of  all  food  consumed  at  home,  whether 


THE  LESSEE  ITEMS  61 

by  family,  friends,  employees,  or  the  stranger  within 
the  gates.  If  too  many  guests  by  chance  send  the  costs 
over  the  top,  the  family  cheerfully  economizes  until  the 
account  is  normal  again.  The  same  general  argument 
applies  to  the  pleasure  given  friends  through  drives  or 
motor  trips. 

But  "parties"  may  well  be  an  extra  cost,  and  esti- 
mated as  such.  And  many  times  one  entertains  away 
from  home,  if  only  by  an  ice-cream  soda  or  the  entrance 
fee  to  the  movies.  When  money  is  spent  in  this  way, 
the  share  for  the  host  or  hostess  is  charged  to  Recrea- 
tion and  only  that  of  the  guest  or  guests  to  Entertain- 
ment. If  one  wishes  to  see  a  play  and  invites  a  friend, 
to  charge  both  tickets  to  Entertainment  would  be  de- 
ceiving oneself  as  to  one's  own  generosity.  In  the  case 
of  membership  to  a  social  club  where  one  often  invites 
friends,  each  time  club  dues  are  paid,  part  should  be 
charged  to  Recreation,  part  to  Entertainment — half  to 
each,  or  one-third  and  two-thirds,  or  any  proportion  that 
seems  just. 

Express,  Freight,  Parcel  Post.  This  heading  does 
not  include  expressage  and  cartage  on  baggage  taken  on 
a  trip.  The  whole  cost  of  the  trip  should  go  under 
Transportation,  in  order  that  one  may  consider  it  as  a 
whole.  All  other  cartage  and  transportation  of  pack- 
ages goes  here  unless  it  is  a  legitimate  part  of  the  cost 
of  some  item  classed  elsewhere.     For  example,  if  food 


62  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

materials  are  shipped  from  city  to  country  or  vice 
versa  as  a  matter  of  economy,  the  shipping  costs  of 
course  are  charged  to  Food.  It  is  probably  wise  to 
charge  the  shipping  costs  on  Gifts  (especially  at  Christ- 
mas) to  that  heading,  as  often  it  costs  as  much  to  send 
as  to  buy  the  gift,  and  one's  attention  is  not  called  to 
that  fact  if  the  express  or  parcel  post  is  charged  else- 
where. It  would  of  course  be  possible  to  eliminate  this 
item  entirely,  charging  each  expenditure  to  some  one 
of  the  other  heads,  but  in  practice  it  has  proved  a  con- 
venience to  have  it. 

Fuel.  This  item  practically  explains  itself.  See 
comment  under  Light. 

Gifts  (Church,  charity,  civic).  This  and  Savings 
are  the  two  headings  of  the  budget  that  usually  profit 
most  by  the  existence  of  the  budget  itself.  There  are 
few  people  who  would  not  like  to  give  more  generously 
than  they  do.  And  there  are  thousands  whose  conscience 
is  continually  uneasy  because  they  are  uncertain  whether 
they  are  giving  their  share.  When  the  family  sits  down 
to  a  delicious  meal  and  some  one  speaks  of  famine  in 
China  or  misery  in  Europe  or  the  children  dying  of 
malnutrition  even  in  our  own  prosperous  land,  how 
can  the  family  be  happy  about  its  table  except  by  re- 
lentlessly thrusting  out  of  mind  the  appalling  pictures 
the  words  conjure  up?  But  if  the  family  has  delib- 
erately planned  its   expenditure   and   has   set   aside   a 


THE  LESSER  ITEMS  63 

definite  portion  of  the  family  income  for  giving  afor 
the  general  good,"  and  also  deliberately  decided  that  it 
has  a  right  to  a  certain  expenditure  for  food,  then  con- 
science does  not  clamor  in  just  the  same  way.  To  be 
sure,  one  may  still  feel  selfish — and  still  be  so — but  at 
least  there  has  been  an  attempt  to  take  one's  share  of 
the  burden  of  the  world. 

Then,  too,  is  one  able  to  enjoy  the  real  luxury  of 
giving.  Few  men  and  women,  and  fewer  children  do 
not  wish  to  help  those  who  are  less  fortunate  than  them- 
selves, and  do  not  feel  that  a  certain  part  of  all  that 
they  have  really  belongs  to  these  less  fortunate.  The 
grown  people  realize  that  this  obligation  extends  to  in- 
stitutions and  foundations  that  render  great  public 
service.  Some  call  this  part  of  their  income  "God's 
share,"  and  this  expresses  most  simply  the  obligation. 
When  the  family  decides  what  this  sum  is  to  be,  that 
sum  then  belongs  to  other  people,  and  the  only  ques- 
tion regarding  it  is  its  wise  distribution.  But  however 
generous  the  amount,  it  is  soon  given  or  promised.  Then 
comes  the  call  of  some  great  need,  and  with  it  comes 
the  chance  for  the  real  luxury  of  giving.  Beyond  the 
sum  that  "belongs"  one  can  give  by  real  sacrifice — 
taking  some  of  the  money  assigned  to  Clothing  or  Recre- 
ation or  Care  of  the  House  or  what  not.  Then  one 
really  gives  and  enjoys  the  deep  pleasure  of  giving. 
Such  pleasure  is  impossible  when  one  has  not  made  a 


64  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

definite  budget,  since  even  if  one  goes  without  a  winter 
coat  one  had  expected  to  buy,  one  may  easily  spend 
enough  more  in  the  spring  to  make  the  total  Clothing  ex- 
penditure as  large  as  it  would  be  normally. 

The  amount  to  be  given  must  depend  in  part  on  the 
needs  of  the  family.  A  family  with  a  generous  income 
for  its  needs  will  naturally  not  be  satisfied  with  giving 
less  than  one-tenth  of  the  income — the  tithes  of  the 
Hebrew  and  many  other  early  religions,  when  the  tenth 
part  of  everything  grown  or  made  belonged  to  the  Lord 
as  a  matter  of  course.  Many  men  and  women  of  large 
income  give  much  more  than  this,  and  it  is  significant 
that  the  IT.  S.  Government  exempts  from  payment  of 
income  tax  up  to  fifteen  per  cent  of  any  income  when 
it  is  given  for  the  public  good. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  family  with  small  income  and 
the  obligation  of  feeding,  clothing,  housing  and  educat- 
ing children  often  cannot  possibly  afford  to  give  one- 
tenth.  Many  such  families  do  not  try  to  give  anything, 
though  their  spirit  is  just  as  willing  as  that  of  their 
richer  brethren.  The  small  gifts  seem  so  insignificant 
in  the  face  of  the  thousands  or  even  millions  that  others 
can  give.  What  will  their  two  dollars  or  their  ten 
cents  do  ?  There  are,  of  course,  two  answers  to  that 
question.  First,  the  small  gifts  taken  together  count 
more  than  the  very  large  gifts.  Any  one  who  has  had 
experience  in  the  finances  of  any  philanthropic  or  edu- 


THE  LESSEE  ITEMS  65 

cational  institution  will  prefer  a  large  number  of  con- 
tributors of  moderate  sums  to  a  single  contributor  of  a 
large  sum.  But  the  other  answer  is  the  one  of  greater 
importance.  Society  is  a  cooperative  affair,  and  it  is 
successful  only  so  far  as  cooperation  approaches  per- 
fection. It  is  not  only  in  the  eyes  of  God  that  the 
widow's  mite  counts  as  much  as  the  bag  of  gold  of 
the  rich  man.  In  the  eyes  of  all  socially  minded  men 
what  counts  is  not  the  amount  that  one  can  give  or  do, 
but  the  fact  that  each  does  his  share.  The  family  that 
does  not  give  something  is  failing  in  its  social  duty. 
As  to  the  amount  that  any  given  family  should  contrib- 
ute, that  is  a  matter  for  them  to  decide,  not  for  others 
to 'tell  them. 

It  is  a  hopeful  fact  that  hundreds  of  families  and  in- 
dividuals who  have  never  budgeted  or  kept  account  of 
any  other  item,  have  learned  to  set  aside  "God's  share" 
and  to  keep  account  of  it,  so  that  they  may  be  sure 
that  they  are  full  members  of  the  human  family. 

Gifts  (Personal).  A  common  mistake  in  budget 
classification  is  to  put  all  gifts  under  one  heading.  It 
needs  but  a  moment's  thought  to  see  that  gifts  to  family 
and  friends  are  a  very  different  matter  from  gifts  for 
the  public  good.  The  personal  gifts  give  the  same  kind 
of  pleasure  that  one  gets  from  entertaining  one's  friends. 
And  in  actual  expenditure  they  bring  a  return  in  the 
form  of  gifts  to  ourselves — although  that  is  not  our 


66  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

own  motive  in  making  any  real  gift.  Gifts  to  church, 
philanthropic  or  civic  work  or  to  individuals  in  need  are 
part  of  our  general  social  obligation. 

Under  Gifts  (Personal)  should  be  charged  the  ex- 
penses of  making  gifts — cards  to  accompany  them,  tissue 
paper,  ribbon,  parcel  post  or  express. 

Health.  This  is  the  most  tyrannical  of  all  the  head- 
ings, since  at  times  it  assumes  control  and  runs  away 
with  Savings  and  even  with  some  of  the  money  assigned 
for  other  uses.  A  family  in  making  a  budget  for  the 
first  time  is  apt  to  say  that  it  is  impossible  to  make  even 
a  general  judgment  as  to  what  must  be  spent  for  the 
year  ahead.  It  is  hardly  an  item  on  which  one  can 
economize,  unless  one  starts  with  the  pernicious  patent 
medicine  habit  and  cuts  that  out !  The  items  include 
charges  for  the  services  of  physician,  surgeon,  oculist, 
aurist,  dentist,  osteopath,  masseuse  and  all  who  give 
"treatment."  It  includes  also  medicines  on  prescrip- 
tion, household  remedies,  glasses  and  the  replacing  of 
broken  lenses.  Among  all  these  charges  there  are  some 
that  are  for  most  people  fairly  regular — the  dentist, 
for  example,  and  household  remedies  like  carbolated 
vaseline  or  laxatives.  But  these  are  a  poor  basis  for 
computing  the  whole.  If  the  expenses  under  this  head 
for  the  last  ^.ye  years  are  added  and  an  average  taken, 
that  will  be  a  fair  start.  If  there  was  any  large  expense 
for  a  major  operation  or  a  long  illness  during  those  five 


THE  LESSEE  ITEMS  67 

years,  that  should  be  omitted  in  the  calculations.  If  by 
any  chance  a  balance  should  be  left  at  the  end  of  the  year 
on  this  account,  the  amount  should  be  added  immedi- 
ately to  Savings,  since  it  is  ordinarily  from  that  account 
that  any  extra  money  needed  for  Health  must  be  taken. 
Sometimes  another  item  can  be  cut  down,  but  it  is  not 
always  advisable  to  do  so.  To  save  on  Food  or  Clothing 
after  a  long  illness  may  prove  in  the  end  an  extrava- 
gance. No  one  can  decide  in  advance  even  for  him- 
self how  such  adjustments  can  be  wisely  made,  but 
those  who  are  used  to  applying  the  right  principles  in 
planning  their  expenditure  will  have  little  difficulty  in 
making  decisions. 

Insurance.  As  already  stated,  fire  insurance  on 
house  is  charged  with  the  other  costs  of  the  house  under 
Rent,  that  for  household  equipment  and  clothing  under 
Care  of  House  and  Clothing- Accessories.  If  it  is  con- 
venient to  have  all  insurance  charges  on  one  card,  one 
column  can  be  used  for  those  charged  here  only,  and 
the  second  with  *d  duplicate  charges.  In  entering,  the 
name  of  company,  number  of  premium  and  time  cov- 
ered should  be  included,  as  this  is  useful  for  reference. 
It  must  be  kept  in  mind  that  when  premises  or  condi- 
tions are  changed  the  insurance  company  must  be 
notified. 

Health  and  accident  insurance  might  at  first  sight 
seem  to  belong  under  Health,  and  allowance  may  be 


68  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

made  for  them  there.  But  when  their  purpose  is  to  pro- 
vide income  or  additional  income,  which  is  not  always 
all  spent  on  physician,  nurse  or  medicine,  it  is  quite 
legitimate  to  charge  them  here. 

Life  insurance  as  a  form  of  investment  is  discussed 
in  Chapter  XV. 

There  are  many  forms  of  insurance.  It  is  said  that 
Lloyd's,  the  great  English  firm,  will  issue  insurance  on 
any  risk  of  any  kind.  To  insure  against  loss  of  crop, 
hy  hail  or  storm,  against  loss  of  business  caused  by  rain 
on  a  holiday,  against  the  non-arrival  of  a  given  train 
(on  time) — there  is  no  end  to  the  list.  But  few  of  these 
affect  the  household  as  such  or  the  individual  in  his 
private  life. 

Laundry.  This  is  an  advisable  item  to  keep  sep- 
arate, even  when  the  work  is  done  at  home  and  no  sep- 
arate wage  is  paid  for  it.  Fuel  that  is  used  for  the 
purpose  is  of  course  not  counted  in  the  household,  as  it 
would  be  in  an  institution  where  cost  accounting  is 
careful.  But  soap,  starch,  bluing,  clothes  pins,  other 
equipment — all  are  easily  recorded,  and  if  a  laundress 
is  employed  the  wage  goes  here  too.  Dry  cleaning  may 
be  charged  here  or  in  Clothing-Repair  or  Care  of 
House  (according  to  article  cleaned). 

The  item  of  Laundry  may  become  a  very  heavy  one, 
and  it  is  one  that  can  be  cut  down  by  the  careful  plan- 
ning of  clothing  and  house  linen,  by  the  proper  care  of 


THE  LESSER  ITEMS  69 

both,  and  often  by  the  laundering  oneself  of  at  least  part 
of  the  clothes.  As  is  pointed  out  under  Clothing,  in 
calculating  its  real  cost,  one  must  consider  the  cost  of 
cleaning  or  repairing  and  the  wearing  quality.  Delicate 
collars  and  blouses  that  will  be  worn  out  in  a  few 
washings  by  the  average  laundry  or  laundress  will  last 
through  many  careful  launderings  by  the  owner.  Many 
a  wise  young  man  washes  out  his  silk  socks  after  every 
wearing,  and  can  listen  calmly  to  the  accusation  of 
extravagance  from  some  comrade  who  says  he  cannot 
afford  silk  socks,  yet  wears  cotton  ones  several  days, 
sends  them  to  the  laundry,  has  them  worn  out  rapidly 
and  actually  spends  more  on  socks  than  his  "extrava- 
gant" friend.  Many  a  young  woman  appears  day  after 
day  in  immaculate  dainty  collars  that  she  washes  or  at 
least  presses  after  every  wearing,  and  handles  so  care- 
fully that  she  can  afford  a  hand-embroidered  collar,  or 
one  with  real  lace,  while  some  of  her  companions  accuse 
her  of  extravagance  and  themselves  wear  machine  em- 
broidered "cheap"  collars  that  they  send  to  the  laundry 
and  whose  cost  per  day  of  actual  wearing  is  double  that 
of  the  collars  of  the  "extravagant"  one.  But  only  those 
who  have  the  budget  and  account  habit  find  it  easy  to 
tell  which  methods  are  best  in  the  end. 

Light.  In  many  budget  classifications  Light  and 
Fuel  form  one  item.  In  the  city  apartment  where  heat 
is  furnished  with  the  rent  and  gas   (or  electricity)  ia 


70  GETTING  YOUB  MONEY'S  WORTH 

used  for  both  lighting  and  cooking,  it  is  not  possible 
to  separate  them  exactly.  Otherwise  it  is  far  better 
to  keep  them  under  separate  heads.  In  most  house- 
holds "Light"  can  be  cut  down  by  careful  use  when 
"Fuel"  is  not  so  easily  controlled.  The  separation 
enables  one  to  judge  how  far  control  is  possible  with 
either. 

Matches  should  be  put  with  Fuel  unless  they  are 
used  for  lighting  also,  in  which  case  their  cost  should 
be  divided  between  the  two  headings.  Candles  of 
course  go  here,  but  candlesticks  and  shades  are  part 
of  house  furnishing,  as  are  lamps,  shades  and  fix- 
tures. 

Lost.  This  is  a  melancholy  heading,  never  to  be 
provided  for  in  the  budget,  but  appearing  occasionally 
in  the  accounts.  It  is  possible  to  avoid  it  when  the 
loss  is  anything  but  money  by  charging  the  cost  of 
return  or  replacement  to  the  item  under  which  the 
original  purchase  was  classified.  For  example,  a  lost 
watch  may  mean  cost  of  advertisement  and  reward  or, 
if  the  watch  is  not  returned,  replacement.  All  of  these 
charges  may  be  made  to  Clothing-Jewelry,  and  the 
amount  planned  for  Clothing  for  that  year  lessened  by 
that  much. 

If  a  sum  of  money  is  lost,  however,  it  lessens  the 
whole  amount  available,  but  is  not  directly  chargeable  to 
one  head.     And  as  a  matter  of  check  on  carelessness  it 


THE  LESSER  ITEMS  71 

is  probably  better  to  charge  all  expenses  of  loss  and  re- 
placement under  the  single  heading. 

Luxuries.  This  is  a  heading  that  many  people  find 
useful  in  their  accounts,  but  it  should  not  be  a  budget 
item,  and  should  be  a  repetition  as  far  as  accounts  go, 
ignored  in  a  balance.  That  is  to  say,  each  item  that 
appears  under  this  heading  must  appear  also  under  its 
own.  To  charge  here  a  new  gown — or  the  cost  above 
the  average  if  a  more  expensive  gown  than  usual  is 
bought — and  not  to  enter  the  amount  also  under  Cloth- 
ing-Gowns conveys  false  information,  since  the  total 
of  the  latter  card  will  in  that  case  not  show  all  that  has 
been  spent  on  that  form  of  clothing.  Eo  "luxury" 
should  cause  overspending  in  any  item.  To  the  person 
who  for  present  satisfaction  or  future  guidance  wishes 
to  know  what  he  or  she  could  have  done  without  com- 
fortably, such  a  list  may  have  excellent  psychological 
effect.  But  in  the  interests  of  honest  accounting  it  must 
be  repeated  that  the  charges  on  this  card  must  be  dupli- 
cates, the  regular  charge  under  the  proper  heading  being 
made  in  the  usual  way. 

Man's  Expenditure.  This  is  an  elastic  item.  It 
may  include  only  the  "pocket  money"  any  man  needs 
for  carfares,  lunches,  tobacco,  papers  and  the  like, 
or  it  may  be  stretched  to  include  all  the  man's  per- 
sonal expenditure,  including  Clothing  and  Entertain- 
ment.    In  the  latter  case  the  sum  must  be  compara- 


72  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

tively  large.  And  also  the  expenditure  (without  hud- 
get)  is  not  very  well  controlled.  Yet  the  fact  remains 
that  very  few  men,  however  much  they  may  declaim 
against  the  unhusiness-like  habits  of  the  housekeeper 
who  keeps  no  account,  are  willing  themselves  to  keep 
account  of  their  personal  (as  distinguished  from  their 
business  or  professional)  expenses.  And  it  is  quite 
possible  for  the  general  family  expenses  to  be  carefully 
planned  and  checked  even  when  the  "head  of  the  house'' 
refuses  to  bother  with  accounts,  provided  that  a  definite 
sum  is  set  aside  at  the  time  of  planning  the  budget,  and 
that  all  cash  he  keeps  or  all  expenditures  made  for  him 
are  charged  against  that  sum.  Without  any  intention  of 
unfairness  on  his  part,  many  a  man  asks  his  wife  to 
buy  or  make  for  him  shirts  or  socks  or  what  not,  and 
forgets  that  the  articles  or  materials  cost  money  that 
must  be  provided  specifically.  These  items  charged 
on  the  Man's  Expenditure  card  show  just  where  his 
expense  stands.  As  with  all  those  who  do  not  keep  ac- 
counts, the  average  man  fails  to  realize  how  small  ex- 
penses mount  up,  and  almost  inevitably  thinks  his  per- 
sonal expenditure  smaller  than  it  is.  He  too  will  get 
his  money's  worth  only  when  he  knows  exactly  what  he 
does  spend,  even  if  he  still  refuses  to  classify  the  ex- 
penditure. 

Postage   (Letter).     This  item  is  commonly  classed 
with    Stationery,  and  that  is  a  natural  grouping.     Yet 


THE  LESSEE  ITEMS  73 

the  fact  remains  that  while  the  item  Postage  can  hardly 
be  varied  much  (since  one  does  not,  after  all,  fail  to 
write  to  a  friend  because  it  costs  two  cents)  that  of 
Stationery  may  be  kept  modest  or  grow  to  very  large 
proportions.  Parcel  post  charges  belong  with  Ex- 
press. 

In  keeping  account  of  postage  exact  dates  are  of  no 
special  value,  and  the  easiest  method  is  to  disregard 
columns  and  run  the  account  across  the  card,  giving 
month  once  and  then  amount,  adding  each  expenditure 
as  it  is  made,  so  that  the  total  is  up  to  date. 

Professional  or  Business  Obligations.  This  item 
is  not  needed  where  all  such  expense  is  automatically 
charged  to  the  professional  or  business  account.  Yet 
more  people  than  one  realizes  at  first  have  some  ex- 
pense of  this  kind  to  meet.  Those  who  are  their  own 
employers  charge  such  expense  to  their  business  or  pro- 
fessional accounts, — or  should  do  so — but  those  on 
salary  or  commission  may  often  find  it  necessary  or 
advisable  to  spend  money  for  such  purposes  that  will 
not  be  paid  by  the  employing  institution  or  firm. 

There  are  many  expenditures  that  fall  under  this 
head,  most  of  them  small.  The  largest  is  probably 
attendance  at  conventions  or  meetings,  where  the  ex- 
pense is  not  met  by  educational  institution  or  business 
house.  Next  come  the  annual  dues  and  contributions 
to  trade,  business  or  professional  associations,  and  sub- 


74  GETTING  YOUK  MONEY'S  WORTH 

scriptions  to  periodicals  of  the  same  kinds.  Attendance 
at  association  or  group  dinners,  the  entertainment  of 
professional  associates  who  are  not  also  personal  friends, 
contributions  to  flowers  for  social  occasions  or  even  fu- 
nerals of  trade  or  professional  associates — all  these 
mount  up.  In  large  cities  even  carfares  for  attendance 
on  committee  and  other  meetings  may  come  to  a  nota- 
ble sum. 

This  heading  is-  probably  more  valuable  to  the  salaried 
people  of  the  educational  world  than  to  any  other  single 
group. 

Reading.  This  includes  the  daily  paper,  magazines, 
books,  rent  of  books  and  library  fines.  Text-books  are 
naturally  charged  under  Education.  This  item  is  easy 
to  control,  as  the  cost  of  regular  subscriptions  is  known 
in  advance,  and  the  purchase  of  new  books  can  be  les- 
sened even  to  vanishing  point.  That  the  family  plan 
should  include  the  addition  to  the  family  library  of  some 
really  worth-while  books  each  year  is  obvious.  Even 
the  service  of  the  fine  public  libraries  of  to-day  cannot 
take  the  place  of  the  books  that  are  part  of  the  family 
life.  The  books  should  be  selected  with  the  same  care 
as  the  family  friends,  and  if  an  uncongenial  stranger  is 
introduced — by  gift,  let  us  say — he  should  be  given  no 
place  in  the  choice  company.  A  shelf  in  store-room 
or  attic  is  good  enough  accommodation,  although  the 
wisest  way  to  dispose  of  him  is  to  give  him  to  some  one 


THE  LESSER  ITEMS  75 

who  likes  him — unless,  of  course,  he  should  by  chance 
be  vicious.  Many  people  respect  a  book  as  such,  and 
give  it  room  and  consideration  when  a  human  being  with 
the  same  qualities  would  not  be  an  acceptable  associate. 
Many  choose  carelessly  a  book  that  is  worth  reading 
once,  but  that  is  not  worth  a  permanent  place  in  the 
home. 

Some  charge  magazines  and  fiction  to  Recreation,  but 
it  is  simpler  to  have  one  heading  for  all  additions  to 
the  general  reading  of  the  family,  and  a  little  study  of 
the  itemized  list  of  expenditures  at  the  end  of  the  year 
will  enable  one  to  judge  whether  the  reading  matter 
added  was  the  wisest  choice.  When  Christmas  and 
birthdays  bring  gifts  of  magazine  subscriptions  or 
worth-while  books,  if  possible  this  should  not  mean 
cutting  down  the  Reading  budget,  'but  only  the  pur- 
chase of  further  reading  matter.  For  pleasure  and 
profit  all  but  the  large-incomed  families  need  more  than 
they  can  assign  to  this  heading. 

Recreation.  This  heading  needs  little  explanation. 
If  there  is  one  special  form  of  recreation  that  calls  for 
proportionately  large  expenditure,  such  as  Music,  Pho- 
tography, Fishing,  a  subhead  can  easily  be  made,  in 
order  to  keep  careful  account,  so  that  the  rest  of  Recrea- 
tion gets  its  share.  Tobacco  needs  such  a  card  in  many 
families.  Comments  under  Vacation  explain  its  re- 
lation to  this  heading,   and  under  Entertainment  at- 


76  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

tention  is  called  to  the  proper  charging  one's  own 
share  of  "Entertainment." 

Savings.  As  is  pointed  out  under  Gifts  (Churchy 
charity,  civic)  this  is  one  of  the  headings  that  profits 
most  hy  the  very  existence  of  a  budget.  It  is  only  too 
much  the  habit  of  those  who  are  concerned  as  to  the 
methods  of  expenditure  of  those  of  small  income  or 
moderate  income  to  talk  as  though  the  people  who  do 
not  save  money  are  lacking  morally  because  they  do  not 
desire  to  save.  Such  an  accusation  is  ridiculous.  The 
person  or  the  family  who  would  not  like  to  have  "money 
in  the  bank"  or  -otherwise  invested  is  so  rare  as  to  be 
negligible  in  discussion.  Every  one  would  like  to  have 
money  "put  by;"  the  difficulty  is  how  to  get  it  into 
that  desirable  position.  Since  the  desires  of  any  nor- 
mal individual  or  family  are  always  greater  than  their 
income  can  satisfy,  there  is  only  one  way  to  effect  sav- 
ing, and  that  is  to  plan  it  deliberately. 

Where  the  income  is  too  small  for  the  legitimate  needs 
of  the  family,  saving  may  become  a  vice  instead  of  a 
virtue.  Many  an  ambitious  working  man  has  saved 
the  flesh  off  his  children's  bones  or  driven  his  wife  to 
an  early  death  by  depriving  her  of  the  very  necessities 
of  life  in  order  that  he  might  watch  his  savings  bank 
account  grow.  This  book,  however,  is  not  meant  for 
those  who  have  not  income  enough  to  feed,  clothe  and 
house  their  families  decently.     As  soon  as  one  reaches 


THE  LESSER  ITEMS  77 

the  moderate  income,  the  income  that  allows  a  margin 
of  choice,  then  the  question  of  Savings  becomes  of  great 
importance. 

Savings  are  for  three  purposes — the  meeting  of 
emergencies,  accumulation  for  special  purposes,  and  pro- 
vision for  old  age,  or  the  time  when  the  earning  power 
decreases  or  ceases.  Savings  for  the  first  purpose  are 
imperative.  A  major  operation,  a  long  illness,  a  costly 
journey  to  a  family  death  bed  or  funeral,  a  period  of 
unemployment — there  should  be  a  sum  available  suffi- 
cient to  meet  any  of  these.  Otherwise  debt  is  almost 
inevitable,  and  debt  is  both  costly  and  discouraging. 
How  much  of  the  income  must  be  saved  for  this  pur- 
pose ?  It  is  of  course  impossible  to  answer  for  any  in- 
dividual or  family,  but  it  is  safe  to  say  that  unless 
one  saves  ten  per  cent  of  the  income  the  margin  is  dan- 
gerously low.  Many  families  of  fair  income  are  in 
such  circumstances  that  they  find  saving  ten  per  cent 
almost  impossible;  others  with  the  same  income  but 
different  circumstances  find  saving  more  easily  pos- 
sible. 

The  second  end — accumulation  for  a  special  purpose 
like  a  musical  education  or  a  voyage  to  foreign  coun- 
tries— needs  no  comment. 

As  to  the  third  end  of  Savings — the  provision  of  an 
income  from  investments  when  one  is  no  longer  earned 
— that  calls  for  more  than  ten  per  cent  of  any  ordinary 


78  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

income.  Each  family  or  individual  must  calculate  and 
plan  for  the  best  methods.  In  Chapter  XY  some  sug- 
gestions are  made  as  to  the  types  of  investment  suited 
to  different  types  of  individual  or  family.  It  should 
be  the  rule  in  the  Savings  item  that  besides  the  sum 
set  aside  from  the  yearly  income,  all  interest  on  money 
already  saved  should  be  turned  back  into  the  Savings 
account.  Where  savings  have  been  invested  in  a  house 
the  family  should  if  possible  pay  regular  rent  to  itself 
and  invest  the  money.  If  this  is  not  done,  the  house  is 
likely  to  prove  no  saving,  as  far  as  future  income  goes. 
Money  saved  for  the  first  purpose — the  emergency — 
may  be  available  for  the  second  purpose,  \vhere  the 
emergency  does  not  arise  or  does  not  prove  serious. 
Savings  for  the  two  purposes  are  not  kept  physically 
separate,  of  course,  but  unless  the  distinction  as  to  the 
two  needs  is  kept  clear,  a  family  that  has  saved  a  little 
money  by  careful  planning  and  some  deprivations  is 
apt  to  be  discouraged  when  it  is  all  swallowed  up  in 
one  siege  of  typhoid  fever.  Every  family  should  ex- 
pect emergencies  and  plan  philosophically  for  them; 
then  if  they  do  not  come,  so  much  the  better.  There  is 
no  question  that  saving  becomes  easier  as  the  savings 
account  grows.  The  interest  in  a  growing  savings  ac- 
count is  a  natural  and  almost  a  universal  interest.  In 
former  days  it  often  led  to  a  love  of  money  for  its 
own  sake  and  so  to  the  miser's  joy  in  his  hoard.     But 


THE  LESSER  ITEMS  79 

in  modern  times  there  is  little  danger  that  the  ordinary 
human  being  will  grow  to  care  more  for  money  than 
for  all  the  opportunities  that  money  makes  possible. 

The  first  obligation  in  planning  expenditure  is  to  in- 
sure physical  and  mental  health  for  the  family;  and 
for  the  latter  a  certain  amount  of  recreation  is  essen- 
tial. The  second  obligation  is  to  the  general  good — to 
give  one's  share.  The  third  obligation  is  to  the  future — 
to  make  due  provision  for  it  in  the  form  of  savings. 
After  these  three  obligations  are  met,  the  family  choice 
decides  the  rest.  There  may  be  instances  where  the 
second  obligation  has  to  yield  to  the  third,  but  normally 
they  go  hand  in  hand  to  make  for  happiness  and  good 
citizenship. 

In  recording  Savings  it  is  frequently  advisable  to 
have  several  cards.  Savings-Insurance  and  Savings- 
Bonds  may  well  be  kept  apart.  When  any  part  of  sav- 
ings is  so  invested  that  money  must  be  paid  out,  it  is 
almost  necessary  to  keep  a  separate  card  for  that  item. 
For  example,  if  the  family  owns  some  real  estate,  there 
will  be  taxes  and  perhaps  other  charges.  The  card  for 
Savings-Hollis  St.  Lots  may  show  expense  only,  to  be 
considered  as  Savings  and  added  to  the  Assets  list  by 
adding  this  year's  payments  to  last  year's  valuation  of 
the  lots  in  question.  If  the  family  builds  a  house  on  one 
lot,  to  rent,  the  heading  becomes  Savings-176  Hollis  St., 
and  the  card  shows  the  income  as  well  as  the  outgo.    All 


80  GETTING-  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

such  records  are  naturally  kept  in  some  form  by  the 
business  man,  but  if  the  family,  or  such  members  of 
it  as  are  old  enough  to  use  the  records,  are  to  know 
where  they  stand,  the  figures  should  appear  there. 

Service.  The  wages  of  employees  in  the  household 
and  payment  for  extra  services  outside  are  chargeable 
here,  except  where  a  specific  heading  claims  the  item. 
Laundry,  for  example,  records  the  wages  paid  a  laun- 
dress, but  if  she  spends  half  her  day  only  on  the  laun- 
dry and  the  other  half  on  cleaning,  the  charge  should 
be  divided.  The  chauffeur,  or,  if  he  is  also  houseman, 
the  due  part  of  his  cost,  is  charged  to  Automobile.  Fees 
to  porters  are  part  of  Transportation  (or  perhaps  Recre- 
ation or  Vacation).  The  cost  of  cutting  the  grass  or 
caring  for  the  garden  are  Care  of  House-Outside, 
although  when  the  garden  produces  food,  the  charge 
must  be  made  to  Food- Vegetable  Garden.  For  any 
work  of  cleaning  in  the  house  it  is  simpler  to 
use  the  heading  Service.  If  one  wishes  to  know  the 
total  that  has  been  paid  during  the  year  in  wages  and 
fees,  this  can  easily  be  obtained  from  the  different  head- 
ings. If  it  is  advisable  to  keep  a  current  record  it  is 
better  to  enter  all  charges  as  Service,  marking  with  a 
*  or  some  other  device  all  items  that  are  also  charged 
elsewhere.  By  keeping  the  starred  items  in  a  column 
of  their  own,  it  is  easy  to  keep  the  account  straight. 

For  regular  employees — what  we  used  in  unregen- 


THE  LESSEE  ITEMS  81 

erate  days  to  call  servants — there  is  gradually  be- 
ing established  an  industrial  basis.  Instead  of  the  old 
idea  that  the  maid's  time  belongs  entirely  to  the  house- 
keeper who  employs  her,  and  who  generously  gives  her 
an  afternoon  off  and  a  number  of  free  evenings,  it  is 
recognized  that  the  employee's  time  is  her  own  except 
as  she  contracts  to  sell  a  certain  fixed  amount  of  it  to 
her  employer.  During  this  definite  schedule  of  hours 
she  works  continuously,  and  at  least  in  the  city  where 
this  is  possible,  she  does  not  live  in  the  house  or  eat 
her  meals  there  as  part  of  her  payment,  but  goes  out 
for  them,  as  a  stenographer  or  factory  worker  would 
do.  Sometimes  she  has  a  room  in  the  house,  as  part 
payment,  but  this  is  a  matter  of  choice.  In  such  cases 
the  money  wage  is  of  course  higher  than  under  the  old 
arrangement,  but  there  seems  to  be  general  agreement 
among  those  who  have  tried  the  method  whole  heartedly 
that  the  money  cost  to  the  household  is  not  greater  than 
before.  In  reckoning  the  cost  of  a  regular  employee  on 
the  old  basis,  one  must  add  to  wages  the  cost  of  food, 
of  at  least  light  for  the  bedroom,  of  wear  and  tear,  and 
if  the  room  is  not  a  superfluity,  of  rent.  These  costs  are 
not  separated  in  the  budget,  but  they  should  be  con- 
sidered, and  at  the  end  of  the  year  it  would  "be  well  to 
add  them  in  lump  sums  to  the  "Service"  total,  so  that 
the  question  of  cost  of  service  is  clear. 

Even  with  the  day  'worker  costs  must  be  considered. 


82  GETTING  YOUK  MONEY'S  WORTH 

The  work  of  the  laundress  costs  in  addition  to  her  wage 
(and  perhaps  carfare)  her  noon  meal,  and  the  cost 
of  furnishing  soap,  hot  water,  bluing,  starch,  heat  for 
the  irons.  Frequently  the  laundering  is  so  much  more 
carefully  done  at  home  under  the  housekeeper's  super- 
vision that  the  saving  in  wear  and  tear  is  considerable, 
but  again  many  times  a  careful  laundress  is  available 
who  will  do  the  work  in  her  own  home  at  no  greater 
money  expense,  if  all  the  items  are  reckoned,  and  a.t 
a  saving  of  time  and  energy  for  the  homemaker.  Some- 
times the  laundry  can  go  from  city  or  town  into  the 
areal  country"  by  parcel  post,  to  the  advantage  of  the 
country  woman  who  has  few  opportunities  to  earn  money 
and  of  the  city  woman  who  gets  her  laundry  done  at 
a  less  money  cost  than  in  the  city,  with  a  greater  prob- 
ability that  the  clothes  have  been  dried  in  clean  air  and 
in  sunshine.  The  advantage  of  the  different  arrange- 
ments possible  is  one  of  the  numerous  cost-accounting 
problems  that  the  housekeeper  must  study,  if  she  is  to 
get  the  most  from  the  family  income. 

Stationery.  Under  Postage  it  is  explained  why  the 
two  items  should  be  kept  separate.  This  heading  in- 
cludes all  the  minor  expenses  attendant  on  correspon- 
dence— ink,  pens,  pencils,  blotters,  paste  erasers.  This 
is  where  accounts  cards  are  charged ! 

Taxes.  This  is  a  heading  only  for  general  taxes, 
the  income  tax  the  chief.     In  some  places  there  is  a 


THE  LESSER  ITEMS  83 

poll  tax  also.  Taxes  on  real  estate  are  charged  to  Kent 
if  one  occupies  the  property,  to  Savings  if  one  holds  the 
property  as  a  present  or  future  means  of  income.  Sales 
taxes  are  naturally  charged  with  the  articles  as  part 
of  their  price  but  if  these  are  listed  also  separately  on 
an  extra  card,  exemption  can  be  claimed  for  them  in 
filing  income  tax  returns. 

Telephone,  Telegram.  This  is  a  convenient  classi- 
fication in  days  when  telegrams  can  be  charged  to  the 
telephone  account.  It  is  only  in  rare  cases  that  there 
would  be  an  advantage  in  keeping  the  two  headings 
separate. 

Toilet.  This  is  one  of  the  minor  items  that  are  not 
usually  detailed,  yet  here  is  a  chance  to  spend  or  save, 
especially  for  a  girl  or  woman.  Tooth  brushes  do  not 
differ  much  in  cost,  but  toilet  soap  may  prove  a  matter 
of  serious  expense.  So  may  perfume,  powder,  cold 
cream,  cosmetics  of  different  sorts.  Then  there  are  the 
shampoo  and  manicuring.  Keeping  this  item  separate 
has  brought  many  a  young  woman  to  the  washing  of 
her  own  hair  and  the  care  of  her  own  nails,  since  money 
thus  saved  may  easily  be  enough  to  do  some  worth-while 
thing  not  otherwise  possible.  Hairpins,  hair  nets,  pins, 
safety  pins — some  of  these  may  be  classed  with  Cloth- 
ing-Accessories if  one  prefers,  but  there  will  still  re- 
main many  items  for  the  heading  Toilet. 

Transportation.     The  division  into  two  headings  is 


Boston 


L««Ei«?M*M* 


84  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

a  convenience.  The  carfare  card  is  easiest  kept  like  that 
for  Postage — a  running  account  across  the  card,  with 
the  total  up  to  date. 

Under  the  general  heading  come  railway  and  boat 
fares,  with  the  attendant  expense  for  baggage,  Pullman 
porters  and  the  like.  Cab  fares  fall  here,  also.  Whether 
the  cost  of  the  vacation  trip  is  to  go  here  is  discussed 
under  the  next  heading. 

Vacation.  Whether  this  is  to  be  kept  a  separate 
item  is  a  matter  for  each  family  or  individual  to  decide. 
Where  the  family  has  a  country  home  or  rents  one  for 
the  year,  the  estimates  for  Food,  Service,  Recreation  and 
the  like  naturally  include  the  summer  expense,  and 
Transportation  takes  care  of  the  traveling  expenses.  If, 
however,  the  vacation  means  a  "trip"  or  a  stay  at  board- 
ing house  or  hotel,  it  may  be  preferable  to  set  aside 
a  sum  to  cover  all  expenses  and  keep  the  heading  sep- 
arate. In  that  case  it  is  better  accounting  to  deduct 
from  the  cost  of  living  what  food  would  have  cost  at 
home,  charging  the  regular  Food  account  with  the 
usual  amount.  The  same  thing  may  be  done  with  the 
Service  account.  The  small  differences  are  unimportant, 
but  there  should  be  some  way  of  deciding  how  much 
more  it  has  cost  to  go  away  from  home  than  it  would 
have  cost  to  stay.  The  difference  is  fairly  chargeable 
to  Vacation. 


VI 

WHY  AND  WHAT  ACCOUNTS? 

For  a  long  time  it  has  been  the  habit  of  many  men, 
especially  those  engaged  in  business,  to  condemn  in  no 
mild  terms  the  woman  in  the  home  who  is  in  charge  of 
expenditure  and  yet  keeps  no  accounts.  Her  failure 
to  do  so  is  made  to  seem  a  moral  delinquency.  As  has 
been  intimated  before,  not  one  out  of  a  hundred  of  these 
critics  keeps  an  account  of  his  own  personal  expenses, 
but  let  that  pass.     What  is  the  need  for  accounts  % 

The  answer  of  most  of  the  housewives  who  do  not 
keep  them  is  that  they  are  of  no  value,  since  the  money 
is  gone,  and  it  has  been  spent  as  well  as  they  knew 
how.  Quite  true.  What  is  the  value  of  accounts  un- 
less they  are  to  be  used  as  a  basis  for  future  planning 
and  as  a  check  on  the  plan  for  the  present  ?  And  they 
are  of  little  use  toward  better  judgment  in  future  spend- 
ing unless  that  better  judgment  is  expressed  in  the 
form  of  a  budget.  On  the  other  hand,  the  budget  is 
of  no  value  unless  accounts  are  kept.  A  plan  must  be 
carried  out,  to  have  value,  and  the  only  way  to  find 
out  whether  the  plan  for  spending  the  family  money  is 
being  put  into  practice  is  to  keep  accounts  under  each 

85 


86  GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WORTH 

budget  heading.  It  is  evident  that  the  budget  has  no 
value  unless  accounts  are  kept  and  that  accounts  have 
little  value  unless  a  budget  is  made. 

The  housewife  who  has  tried  to  keep  accounts  and 
given  it  up  almost  always  declares  that  the  last  straw 
in  what  seemed  to  her  a  useless  burden  was  the  strain 
and  worry  of  the  daily  balance.  To  spend  minutes  and 
gray  matter  hunting  for  three  cents  or  eight  cents 
usually  ends  in  despair  of  the  whole  business.  It  has 
been  usual  in  books  on  household  accounts  to  lay  great 
stress  on  this  daily  balance,  treating  the  family  ex- 
penditure on  the  regular  bookkeeping  basis.  But  this 
is  a  wrong  stress.  If  a  few  cents  are  unaccounted  for, 
what  is  there  to  worry  about  ?  At  the  end  of  the  year 
that  few  cents  and  the  others  that  are  missing  will  have 
to  be  deducted  from  Savings  or  provided  from  some  of 
the  surpluses.  But  even  five  cents  a  day  only  amounts 
to  $18.25  a  year,  and  if  the  income  is  $3,000  that  is  only 
roughly  speaking  %  of  1%.  Frankly,  that  unac- 
counted sum  is  negligible  in  the  face  of  the  value  of  the 
classified  account  that  has  been  kept,  and  is  not  worth 
the  sacrifice  of  several  hours  and  a  good  deal  of  peace 
of  mind.  From  the  accounting  point  of  view  this  is 
heresy,  but  from  the  family  point  of  view  it  is  com- 
monsense. 

Of  course  if  the  unaccounted  amount  is  several  dol- 
lars instead  of  several  cents,  and  if  this  deficit  occurs 


WHY  AND  WHAT  ACCOUNTS?  87 

frequently,  the  matter  becomes  serious.  The  housewife 
beginning  to  record  her  expenditure  would  do  well  to 
make  for  a  time  at  least  a  weekly  balance.  This  is  easy, 
with  the  system  of  accounts  recommended  here,  as  the 
little  temporary  notebook  will  show  all  cash  expendi- 
ture for  the  week,  and  a  page  can  be  given  to  cash 
received,  so  that  the  balance  is  quickly  made.  Add  cash 
on  hand  and  cash  received  during  the  week,  add  cash 
expenditure,  subtract  the  latter  from  the  former  and 
see  how  much  of  that  amount  is  on  hand  in  cash.  If 
the  difference  is  $1  a  week,  a  daily  balance  should  be 
tried  for  a  little  until  the  inexperienced  accountant  has 
trained  herself  to  record  expenditure  more  carefully. 
It  is  easier  to  look  back  over  the  expenditure  of  one  day 
than  over  that  of  one  week.  When  the  week's  balance 
is  fairly  even,  change  to  a  monthly  balance  and  when 
that  is  fairly  even,  change  to  the  yearly  balance.  There 
are  those  who  temperamentally  enjoy  making  or  try- 
ing to  make  an  exact  balance,  but  those  who  dislike  it 
and  find  it  time-consuming  should  not  feel  pangs  of  con- 
science over  their  failure  when  the  yearly  deficit  is  less 
than  1%  of  the  income.  There  are  few  even  of  those 
who  find  the  balance  most  difficult  who  will  not  find 
the  unaccounted-for  sum  lessened  as  they  acquire  the 
habit  of  noting  expenditures.  But  household  account- 
ing may  be  entirely  adequate  to  the  needs  of  the  family 
even  if  it  would  not  pass  as  perfect  with  the  bookkeeper. 


88  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

The  bugbear  of  the  daily  balance  disposed  of,  let 
us  go  further  and  say  that  accounts  should  be  inter- 
esting— even  entertaining.  They  should  not  require 
much  time;  a  half  an  hour  a  week  is  usually  ample, 
aside  from  the  jotting  down  of  cash  expenditure  as  it 
occurs.  But  the  record  should  be  so  interesting  that 
the  one  who  keeps  it  is  tempted  to  linger  over  and  study 
it,  to  make  little  reckonings  as  to  probabilities,  and  to 
find  pleasure  in  working  out  possible  choices  and  ad- 
justments. To  do  this  the  accounts  must  not  only  be 
classified,  as  the  adoption  of  a  budget  requires,  but  also 
itemized.  It  is  not  enough  to  enter  under  Clothing- 
Shoes 

June  25        2.25 

"      29  .75 

July   15      12.50 

The  entries*  should  tell  a  story,  like  this 

June  25     Tan  sneakers  2.25 

"      29     1  black  shoe  half-soled       .75 

July   15     White  bucks  12.50 

An  account  should  answer  in  the  shortest  possible 
time  any  question  one  wishes  to  ask  about  past  expendi- 
ture. The  rarest  question  of  all  usually  is  "How  much 
have  we  spent  altogether  so  far  this  year?"     In  the 


WHY  AND  WHAT  ACCOUNTS?  89 

system  recommended  here  that  can  be  answered  only 
by  adding  a  number  of  totals,  and  will  take  ten  or 
fifteen  minutes.  But  aHow  much  have  we  spent  on  food 
so  far  this  year,  or  this  month,  or  this  week?"  can  be 
answered  by  a  single  addition,  taking  but  a  moment. 
"When  did  you  get  that  brown  coat?  Have  you  worn 
it  three  seasons  or  four?"  Clothing-Coats  and  Wraps 
for  the  individual  in  question  answers  that  instantly. 
"How  much  stationery  should  we  order  to  last  until 
summer  ?"  is  answered  easily  from  the  Stationery  card, 
with  its  record  of  the  date  and  amount  of  the  last  order. 
"What  did  the  porch  chair  cost  ?"  Care  of  House-Fur- 
nishings tells  you  in  a  moment.  "Have  we  overspent 
on  Food  so  far  this  year?"  is  answered  quickly  from 
the  Food  account,  and  a  little  figuring  as  to  the  monthly 
allowance  multiplied  by  the  number  of  months  that 
have  passed.  "When,"  "what"  and  "how  much" — all 
questions  beginning  with  any  one  of  these  words  are 
answerable  by  good  accounts.  "Why"  begins  subtler 
questions,  but  questions  and  answers  alike  arise  as 
one  lingers  over  the  story  of  the  family  life,  told  in  the 
record  of  dollars  and  cents. 

Those  who  are  keeping  a  budget  for  the  first  time 
should  certainly  check  up,  even  if  roughly,  at  the  end 
of  the  first  three  months.  List  all  headings,  just  in 
pencil  on  a  big  sheet,  and  head  two  columns  Overspent 
and  Underspent.     Add  the  amount  under  each  head- 


90  GETTING  YOUK  MONEY'S  WORTH 

ing,  compare  it  with  one-fourth  the  amount  allowed  for 
the  year,  put  the  difference  under  Underspent  if  the 
full  amount  has  not  been  spent,  under  Overspent  if 
there  is  an  overamount.  Put  0  in  both  columns  for  an 
account  that  exactly  balances.  Expenditure  in  many 
items  must  be  irregular.  If  the  accounts  begin  Janu- 
ary 1  and  the  family  pays  its  income  tax  in  one  amount, 
the  sum  for  the  whole  year  appears  in  the  three-months 
account  as  three-fourths  Overspent.  But  perhaps  the 
fire  insurance  is  paid  yearly  and  in  July,  in  which  case 
on  March  31  there  is  one-quarter  of  the  whole  sum  in 
the  Underspent  column.  When  all  are  calculated,  add 
the  two  columns.  If  Overspent  is  more  than  Under- 
spent, run  through  the  items  and  see  whether  this  is 
justifiable.  Perhaps  the  family  expenditure  January- 
March  is  legitimately  more  than  in  any  other  quarter, 
but  it  is  well  to  make  sure.  If  Savings  is  Underspent 
the  difference  between  the  amount  saved  and  the  amount 
planned  should  be  treated  as  a  deficit. 

The  time  taken  for  this  checking  up  is  not  great,  and 
repetition  at  the  end  of  the  second  and  third  quarters 
of  the  year  will  help  bring  a  better  result  at  the  end 
of  the  year.  Although  this  process  is  more  necessary 
to  the  family  inexperienced  in  budgets,  it  is  one  in- 
variably of  value  to  the  experienced. 

Many  find  it  helpful  to  put  on  the  accounts  with  the 
heading  not  only  the  budget  amount    (as  directed  in 


WHY  AND  WHAT  ACCOUNTS?  91 

the  next  chapter)  but  also  the  monthly  amount.  Then 
checking  can  he  quickly  made  at  the  end  of  any  month 
by  multiplying  the  monthly  allowance  by  the  number 
of  the  months  recorded.  As  most  people  do  not  enjoy 
addition,  multiplication  and  subtraction  in  and  for 
themselves,  it  is  well  to  adopt  any  device  that  lessens 
the  amount  of  this  work  to  be  done.  It  is  not  at  all 
a  bad  idea  to  ask  the  children  to  do  some  of  this  divi- 
sion. $125  a  year  for  clothing  sounds  like  a  huge  sum 
to  Johnny,  but  when  he  finds  that  is  only  $10.41  a 
month  and  that  his  winter  underclothing  alone  costs  more 
than  half  that,  he  begins  to  realize  that  the  item  Cloth- 
ing eats  up  a  lot  of  money  in  other  things  than  suits, 
coats,  hats  and  shoes.  And  when  he  finds  that  at  the 
end  of  the  first  three  months  his  clothing  allowance  for 
that  time  is  overspent  by  nearly  a  whole  month's  al- 
lowance, he  may  even  grow  more  careful  in  the  care 
of  the  clothing  he  already  has! 


Til 

HOW  TO  KEEP  ACCOUNTS 

The  crucial  question  is  how  to  keep  accounts  so  that 
they  will  answer  the  questions  one  wishes  to  ask,  and 
yet  will  not  be  a  nuisance,  a  burden,  or  a  time-consum- 
ing task. 

The  forms  available  for  household  accounting  are 
numerous.  The  greater  number  are  books  with  col- 
umns two  ways  on  the  page,  one  for  the  heading  and 
one  for  the  days  of  the  month.  There  are  several  ob- 
jections to  this  type  of  account.  First,  they  do  not 
allow  itemized  accounting  under  a  single  heading.  It 
is  not  easy  to  trace  back  the  Clothing  items  and  to  find 
when  a  certain  article  was  bought  or  its  cost.  They  give 
a  total  to  date,  of  the  whole  expenditure  and  of  each 
heading.  But  (the  second  objection)  they  do  not  offer 
space  enough  for  the  detailed  headings  strongly  recom- 
mended in  this  book.  The  grouping  of  headings  dif- 
fers with  different  compilers,  but  there  is  invariably 
grouping  of  some  sort,  and  almost  always  the  repre- 
hensible Miscellaneous  or  Sundries.  The  third  objec- 
tion is  that  the  squared  spaces  and  the  following  of 
lines  across  a  page  are  not  easy  to  the  person  unused 

92 


HOW  TO  KEEP  ACCOUNTS  93 

to  bookkeeping,  and  are  very  frequently  confusing  to 
the  eye  and  bewildering  to  the  mind. 

If  the  family  is  to  keep  detailed  accounts  under  the 
headings  chosen  to  fit  its  own  needs,  no  printed  form 
with  headings  can  be  used.     The  family  must  use  either 
a  card  or  a  loose  leaf  system,  each  card  or  leaf  with  its 
own  head  and  perhaps  subhead.     Whether  the  card  or 
the  leaf  shall  be  chosen  is  chiefly  a  matter  of  tempera- 
ment.    The  card  is  undoubtedly  the  most  compact  and 
economical  form,   economizing  both  time  and  storage 
space.     But  there  are  some  people  to  whom  a.  card  file 
of  any  sort  is   anathema,   and  these  prefer  the  loose 
leaves,  fastened  into  covers.     In  giving  directions  for 
accounts  this  book  will  speak  in  the  terms  of  the  card, 
but  whatever   applies   to   that    applies   equally  to   the 
loose  leaf.     Accounts  are  kept  on  either  in  exactly  the 
same  way,  and  cards  and  leaves  arranged  alphabetically. 
In  actual  use  the  card,  is  easier  not  only  because  most 
people  turn  to  a  given  heading  in  a  card  file  quicker 
than  to  one  in  a  book,  but  because  it  is  easier  to  slip 
the  card  from  the  file  to  study  or  to  make  entries  than  it 
is  to  handle  the  page  of  the  book.     It  is  also  less  trouble 
to  add  new  cards  than  new  leaves.     But  for  the  person 
finding  the  leaves  easier,  their  use  is  an  economy.     Eo 
attempt  should  be  made  to  keep  the  accounts  in  a  blank 
note-book,   with   headings  for  each   page  or   series   of 
pages.     This  is  sure  to  mean  an  undue  allowance  of 


94  GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WOETH 

space  under  one  head  and  not  enough  under  another, 
and  new  headings  or  subheadings  cannot  be  added  easily. 
It  is  also  difficult  to  work  out  index  edges  that  will 
enable  one  to  turn  rapidly  to  the  heading  wanted.  There 
is  no  advantage  to  the  book  unless  it  be  that  a  book  is 
harder  to  lose  than  a  card  or  leaf,  but  as  the  account 
file  is  kept  in  or  on  desk  or.  writing  table,  there  is  no 
reason  to  fear  loss. 

The  first  provision  for  account  keeping  is  for  the 
record  of  cash  as  spent.  For  this  purpose  there  must 
be  paper  and  pencil  at  hand.  If  the  housewife  pays 
some  money  out  at  the  kitchen  door,  the  best  arrange- 
ment is  probably  a  small  cheap  pad  hung  in  some  con- 
venient place,  with  pencil  secured  to  it  by  a  string. 
For  marketing  a  small  cheap  note-book  is  best,  as  a 
single  sheet  of  paper  is  apt  to  get  mussed  or  even  lost. 
If  the  keeper  of  accounts  resembles  most  women,  she 
has  several  purses  or  bags  to  use  on  different  occasions. 
Then  each  of  these  should  be  provided  with  a  little 
book,  such  as  can  often  be  bought  for  a  penny  each, 
and  a  short  pencil  with  protected  point.  The  only  safety 
for  the  account  keeper  is  to  jot  down  expenditure  as 
soon  as  it  is  made.  If  marketing,  the  note-book  should 
be  taken  out  with  the  money,  and  the  item  entered — 
the  date,  in  the  shortest  form,  the  briefest  indication 
of  the  item  and  the  amount.  It  takes  but  an  instant. 
If  one  buys  a  pair  of  shoes  it  is  not  necessary  to  put 


HOW  TO  KEEP  ACCOUNTS  95 

down  more  than  "Shoes."  When  recorded  permanently 
they  may  be  "Tan  sport  shoes"  or  "Black  walking 
boots"  or  "Gray  suede  pumps"  but  the  briefest  indica- 
tion is  enough  to  recall  to  the  memory  the  details  of 
the  purchase.  If  Food  is  kept  as  one  general  heading, 
that  word  is  enough  to  go  down  in  the  note-book,  but 
if  the  headings  Food-Vegetables  and  Food-Meat,  Fish, 
Poultry  are  used,  then  one  jots  down  "Veg."  or  "Fish," 
as  the  case  may  be.  Carfare  goes  down  as  one  rides, 
and  the  newspaper  bought  on  the  street  goes  down  the 
next  time  one  opens  the  book.  It  is  a  help  worth  noting 
to  fasten  together  with  a  clip  the  used  pages  of  each 
note-book,  so  that  the  book  opens  to  the  page  to  be 
used  next. 

The  second  provision  is  the  cards  themselves.  Those 
approximately  4x6  inches  are  the  best,  being  small 
enough  to  allow  (in  two  columns)  26  entries  on  each 
side  of  tHe  card.  They  are  best  ruled  like  the  cards 
illustrated,  but  if  such  ruling  is  not  to  be  had,  it  is 
a  simple  matter  to  buy  the  cards  without  any  vertical 
lines,  and  to  rule  (preferably  in  red  ink)  the  one  double 
(central)  and  six  single  lines  needed.  There  must  be 
a  card  for  every  heading  and  one  for  every  subheading. 
There  should  be  an  extra  supply  for  Budget,  Assets,  In- 
come, and  additional  cards.  An  initial  purchase  of  100 
will  allow  a  good  margin.  Each  Clothing  budget — for 
each  member  of  the  family,  that  is — will  take  eight 


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98  GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WORTH 

cards,  so  that  five  people  use  forty  cards.  When  the 
cards  are  bought,  get  also  one  or  two  dozen  guide  cards, 
"fifths ;"  that  is,  blue  or  yellow  cards  4x6,  with  a  pro- 
jecting tab  at  the  top  that  is  one-fifth  the  length  of 
the  card. 

On  the  top  line  of  each  card,  at  the  extreme  left, 
should  be  printed  or  very  plainly  written  the  heading. 
If  there  is  a  subhead,  both  names  go  on,  with  a  dash 
between  as,  for  example,  Clothing-Accessories,  Cloth- 
ing-Underwear. This  is  to  ensure  an  alphabetic  ar- 
rangement of  the  budget  divisions.  Another  dash  fol- 
lows, and  the  year;  as,  for  example,  Clothing-Under- 
wear-1922  (or  if  the  calendar  year  is  not  used,  1922- 
23).  Then  at  the  extreme  right  of  the  line,  write  the 
amount  allowed  in  the  budget.  Where  there  are  sub- 
heads, as  in  Clothing,  put  this  figure  on  only  one  card, 
the  one  that  comes  first  in  the  alphabetical  order.  It  is 
a  help  in  using  the  Clothing  cards  to  color  the  tops  dif- 
ferently for  different  members  of  the  family — red  ink 
for  one,  blue  for  another,  green  for  a  third,  black  for  a 
fourth.  This  makes  it  easier  to  put  back  into  the  file 
in  the  right  place  any  card  removed  for  entry  or  con- 
sultation. 

The  system  is  flexible  and  allows  the  temporary  adop- 
tion of  subheads  when  these  seem  worth  while.  For 
example,  if  the  cost  of  the  meat  used  has  a  tendency  to 
mount  too  rapidly  during  the  winter,   a  card  can  be 


HOW  TO  KEEP  ACCOUNTS 


99 


written  for  Food-Meat  Nov.  1922-Ueb.  1923,  the  note 
being  written  just  below;  Other  months  on  main  Food 
card.     A  subhead  adopted  and  later  judged  useless  is 


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The  cards  are  spread  a  little  to  show  the  arrangement  of 
headings.  When  the  Clothing  cards  of  the  little  daughter  Bar- 
bara end,  another  guide  lettered  "Clothing  (A.B.)"  begins  the 
mother's  record. 


quickly  got  rid  of  by  adding  the  total  to  the  card  with 
the  main  heading,  and  filing  the  itemized  account  in 
Used  Cards. 

The  card  containing  the  Budget  is  better  placed  at 
the  beginning,  before  the  alphabetic  file.     The  Income 


100         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

card  or  cards  may  follow  it  or  may  be  put  into  the  alpha- 
betic file.  This  card,  by  the  way,  is  conveniently  kept 
in  two  divisions  (either  different  columns,  different 
sides  of  one  card  or  different  cards)  for  income  on  which 
tax  must  be  paid  and  for  that  which  is  exempt.  The 
latter  must  of  course  be  reported  in  the  income  tax  re- 
turn, but  the  separation  has  to  be  made  there,  and  time 
is  saved  if  it  is  made  currently.  The  Assets  cards  are 
more  conveniently  kept  clipped  together  at  the  back 
of  the  file,  as  they  are  not  used  with  any  frequency. 
Extra  cards  of  record,  such  as  the  record  of  bonds 
described  in  Chapter  XV,  or  a  card  for  Loans,  or  any 
other  item  relating  to  expense,  are  filed  into  the  alpha- 
bet for  easy  reference. 

Arrange  this  file,  then  select  headings  for  the  guide 
cards.  The  first,  with  the  tab  at  the  extreme  left,  is 
naturally  Accounts,  then  the  next,  whose  tab  falls 
just  to  the  right,  may  be  Clothing.  The  one  with  the 
middle  tab  may  be  Food,  the  one  whose  tab  falls  just 
to  the  right  of  it  Income,  the  one  whose  tab  falls  at 
the  extreme  right  Postage.  The  exact  headings  chosen 
are  not  so  important,  but  the  guides  should  be  so  ar- 
ranged that  one  does  not  hide  another  and  the  head- 
ings chosen  should  be  among  those  often  used.  They 
greatly  facilitate  the  finding  of  the  cards  needed.  At 
the  back  of  the  file  place  the  blank  cards  that  are  left, 
and  the  unused  guides.     Complete  the  file  by  placing 


HOW  TO  KEEP  ACCOUNTS  101 

at  the  very  front  a  piece  of  blotting  paper  cut  to  the 
size  of  the  cards. 

The  cards  may  of  course  be  strapped  together  with 
a  heavy  rubber  band  or  a  narrow  elastic,  but  they  are 
easier  to  use  and  suffer  less  from  wear  and  tear  if  they 
are  kept  in  a  regular  file  box.  These  are  obtainable  in 
wood,  the  outside  measurements  being  approximately 
QV2  x  5Me  x  3%.  Such  a  box  will  hold  the  cards  for 
the  accounts  of  a  family  of  five  for  at  least  three 
years,  perhaps  more.  Select  a  box  with  a  hinged  cover, 
rather  than  an  uncovered  box  (allowing  dust  to  settle 
on  the  cards)  or  one  with  a  removable  cover,  which  is 
easily  misplaced  and  not  as  easily  replaced  on  the  box 
without  damage  to  the  guides.  The  box  can  easily  be 
decorated  by  a  coat  or  two  of  coach  paint,  some  stencils 
and  a  coat  of  white  shellac.  A  gay  account  box  has  a 
certain  psychological  effect.  If  the  box  seems  at  the 
moment  an  extravagance,  a  box  or  tray  can  be  contrived 
of  a  small  wooden  or  strong  pasteboard  box  of  approxi- 
mately the  right  size.  The  sides  should  be  high  enough 
to  hold  the  cards  upright,  but  low  enough  to  allow  the 
handling  of  the  top  of  the  cards  from  the  side ;  a  good 
height  is  three  inches.  All  these  details  may  seem 
trivial,  but  it  is  very  important  to  make  the  machinery 
of  account  keeping  as  easy  as  possible  to  use.  Some  of 
the  details  have  other  importance.  For  example,  if 
the  year  date  is  left  off  the  top  line  of  any  card,  con- 


102        GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

fusion  may  result  several  years  later,  when  one  wants 
to  look  up  the  details  of  earlier  expenditure. 

With  the  file  and  notebooks  all  ready — well  before 
the  date  of  beginning  the  accounts — the  first  day  sees 
pencil  entries  in  one  or  more  of  the  notebooks.  Let  this 
run  on  for  a  week,  then  at  a  stated  time  (not  necessary, 
but  on  the  whole  easier),  enter  on  the  cards  all  the 
items  of  the  week.  Collect  all  the  notebooks  and  the 
sheets  from  the  kitchen  pad.  Perhaps  there  has 
been  some  odd  note  during  the  week,  in  which  case  the 
natural  place  to  drop  the  paper  containing  it  is  the  Ac- 
counts box,  in  front  of  the  file.  (Here  go  any  temporary 
notes  regarding  accounts,  such  as  a  loan  to  be  repaid  in 
a  day  or  two.)  Then  there  is  the  check-book,  which  has 
been  used  also,  perhaps,  as  is  advised  in  Chapter  XIV. 
Gather  them  all  and  enter  the  data.  Obviously  the 
entries  cannot  be  made  in  a  sprawling  or  careless  hand. 
A  printing  such  as  is  represented  in  the  illustrations  is 
easily  acquired  and  economizes  space,  but  any  neat 
small  hand  will  do.  Ink  should  be  used,  as  the  mark 
of  even  a  hard  pencil  is  rubbed  when  the  cards  are 
handled. 

In  the  first  column  goes  the  date — not  the  year,  since 
that  is  at  the  top  of  the  card,  but  the  month  (or  abbrevi- 
ation) and  the  day.  Where  several  purchases  of  the 
week  can  be  classed  together,  there  is  no  point  in  giving 
separate  entry  to  the  several  items  because  they  were 


HOW  TO  KEEP  ACCOUNTS  103 

on  different  days.  For  example,  during  the  week  be- 
ginning July  6  vegetables  may  have  been  bought  every 
day  but  Sunday.  The  entry  is  then  not  detailed,  but 
under  Food- Vegetables  "July  6-11  3.14."  In  such  a 
case  of  detailed  subhead,  the  card  may  even  have  its 
entries  run  along  with  a  cumulating  total,  as  is  described 
under  Postage  in  Chapter  V.  If  matches  were  bought 
on  July  8  and  kerosene  for  the  oil  stove  on  July  10  the 
entry  under  Fuel  reads 

July  8-10     Matches  .12     5  Kerosene  .85     .97 

Or,  if  there  is  no  danger  of  failing  to  identify  entries 
in  case  of  doubt,  the  month  alone  may  be  used 

July     Matches  .12  5  Kerosene  .85     .97 

Economy  of  space  is  desirable  and  many  devices  there 
are  to  obtain  it. 

One  of  these  is  for  such  frequent  small  expenditures 
as  newspapers  or  magazines  bought  away  from  home, 
the  small  fees  paid  for  polishing  shoes,  the  cost  of  send- 
ing parcel  post  packages.  In  any  of  these  cases  a  slip 
of  paper  clipped  to  the  back  of  the  proper  card  in  the 
Accounts  enables  one  to  note  these  expenses  here  as  they 
occur  and  then  occasionally  to  make  one  entry  such  as : 

Nov.-Dec.      (Single)  Newspapers      .42 
Feb.-April     Shoes  polished  .60 


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106         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WOETH 

When  a  column  is  filled,  the  addition  should  be  made 
at  once  and  the  total  written  in  at  the  head  of  the  next 
column.  In  this  way  the  totals  are  never  far  behind. 
"When  one  side  of  the  card  is  used,  turn  and  use  the 
other,  writing  in  the  heading  as  at  first.  When  a  second 
card  becomes  necessary,  it  is  better  to  put  after  the 
year  another  dash  and  the  figure  2 — or  3,  for  a  third 
card.    For  example : 

Food-Fruit— 1922— 2 

When  one  card  is  filled  and  the  total  transferred  to 
the  top  of  the  first  column  of  the  next,  put  the  filled 
card  (alphabetically)  into  a  file  at  the  back,  with  a 
guide  in  front  marked  Used  Cards.  It  is  convenient  to 
fasten  these  together  with  a  large  clip  or  strong  rubber 
band,  so  that  there  is  no  danger  of  other  cards  being 
mixed  in.  After  a  year  or  two  there  will  be  a  con- 
siderable cumulation  of  these  cards,  but  the  alphabetic 
arrangement  (and  under  the  alphabet  a  chronological 
order)  will  enable  one  to  look  up  a  back  item 
quickly. 

At  the  end  of  the  year  add  the  total  of  each  card,  and 
in  the  case  of  a  heading  with  subheads,  the  totals  of  all 
these,  on  one  of  the  cards  that  has  space  enough  for 
this.  Clothing-Accessories  is  a  good  one  to  use  for 
Clothing.  If  a  year's  entries  fill  only  half  the  card  or 
less,  the  card  should  be  used  for  the  next  year  also,  the 
year  and  (if  necessary)  the  budget  allowance  being  writ- 


HOW  TO  KEEP  ACCOUNTS  107 

ten  at  the  beginning  of  the  account.  A  card  such  as 
Clothing- Jewelry  should  last  any  one  several  years.  The 
use  of  the  cards  in  this  way  not  only  economizes  in 
cards  and  storage  space,  but  facilitates  comparison  be- 
tween year  and  year. 

When  all  the  cards  are  totaled,  write  into  the  space 
left  for  the  purpose  on  the  Budget  card,  opposite  each 
heading,  and  next  the  sum  assigned  it,  the  actual  ex- 
penditure. Total  the  columns  and  compare  the  Budget 
total  with  the  Accounts  total.  Have  regard  to  Savings 
in  doing  this,  since  if  this  shows  any  deficit,  the  result 
is  not  right  even  if  the  totals  are  evenly  balanced.  The 
card  is  now  the  Budget-Summary  card  for  that  year. 
The  budget  for  the  next  year  is  of  course  made  tenta- 
tively before  the  accounts  for  the  current  year  can  be 
closed,  but  the  Budget-Summary  card  should  be  studied 
carefully  to  see  whether  it  is  in  any  way  a  stimulus  to 
revision  of  the  tentative  budget.  It  is  well  not  to  write 
the  new  Budget  card — or  perhaps  to  leave  some  items  in 
pencil — until  the  Budget-Summary  card  can  be  studied 
a  little. 

The  Assets  card  comes  next,  and  is  easily  made  on  the 
basis  of  the  one  with  which  the  family  began.  The  dif- 
ference between  the  total  of  the  Assets  of  one  year  and 
that  of  the  next  should  equal  the  Savings  of  the  year 
(including  the  reduction  of  debt)  plus  any  larger 
amount  of  cash  on  hand.  When  the  comparison  is 
made  here,  a  discrepancy  is  at  once  discerned,  unless  in 


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110         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

the  rare  case  where  the  account  keeper  has  balanced  ac- 
curately and  without  relapse.  The  difference  is  the 
amount  of  money  unaccounted  for,  dealt  with  earlier  in 
the  chapter.  If  Savings  have  had  their  due  share,  this 
deficit  is  not  important,  and  could  fairly  be  assigned  to 
one  or  two  or  three  of  the  larger  headings.  If  the  de- 
ficit is  more  than  1%  of  the  income,  as  has  been  pointed 
out  before,  the  accountant  will  be  wise  to  establish  or 
continue  the  habit  of  a  weekly  balance,  even  if  Savings 
has  not  suffered.  Otherwise  one  or  more  of  the  budget 
items  may  be  getting  an  undue  share  of  the  sum  not 
accounted  for. 

When  the  accounts  are  made  up,  the  full  cards,  or 
those  that  obviously  would  not  last  through  a  second 
year,  should  be  filed  with  Used  Cards,  and  new  cards 
for  the  current  year  written  at  once. 

A  file  of  receipts  is  part  of  any  system  of  accounts. 
As  is  said  in  Chapter  XIV  if  a  bill  is  paid  by  check  the 
returned  check  is  sufficient  receipt.  All  other  receipts 
are  conveniently  kept  alphabetically  by  the  name  of  the 
creditor  and  those  of  one  year  together,  so  that  after 
the  number  of  years  during  which  debt  is  collectible, 
they  may  be  destroyed  without  examination,  as  in  the 
case  of  bank  checks. 

A  practical  help  in  keeping  watch  of  accounts  due 
is  a  monthly  slip  list  of  payments  to  be  met  during  the 
month.     One  form  is  made  by  clipping  together  three 


HOW  TO  KEEP  ACCOUNTS  111 

slips  of  paper.  The  top  one  is  about  an  inch  wide  and 
two  or  three  inches  long.  On  it  are  written  near  the 
right  margin  the  headings  of  the  regular  monthly  pay- 
ments— for  example,  Rent,  House,  Fuel,  Service,  Tele- 
phone. This  is  clipped  to  a  slip  about  three  inches 
square.  At  the  top  of  this  is  written  the  date :  Sept.  1, 
1922.  Opposite  each  heading  is  the  amount  that  month 
will  call  for.  On  the  right  are  written  any  special 
charges  due  that  month,  such  as  Dentist,  Fire  Insur- 
ance. The  third  slip  is  about  three  by  five,  so  that 
when  the  three  are  clipped  together  it  projects  two 
inches  below  the  others,  and  on  this  are  payments  due 
some  time  ahead,  such  as 

Oct.  1  Life  Insurance 
Oct.  15  Hospital  pledge 
Nov.  20     Interest  E.  K. 

This  third  slip  does  not  need  to  be  changed  monthly, 
and  the  top  slip  only  when  it  grows  soiled.  If  these  are 
put  into  a  letter  clip,  unpaid  bills  can  be  slipped  in  be- 
hind them,  and  other  possible  causes  of  expenditure, 
such  as  the  appeal  to  contribute  to  a  relief  fund.  Obliga- 
tions that  must  be  met  in  the  near  future  can  thus  be 
easily  checked. 

Any  person  keeping  accounts  will  make  some  varia- 
tions from  the  procedure  as  outlined  here,  or  from  any 
procedure  set  forth  by  another  person.     But  this  par- 


112         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WOETH 

ticular  routine  is  the  result  of  years  of  experience,  and 
of  the  experience  of  many  individuals.  If  it  is  observed 
carefully  at  first,  many  a  pitfall  will  be  avoided,  and  the 
practice  of  it  will  give  judgment  as  to  the  adjustment 
the  individual  may  wish  to  make.  The  procedure  is 
certainly  not  perfect,  and  any  one  may  hope  to  improve 
it,  but  it  is  practical  and  effectual  as  it  stands. 


VIII 
ON  EEADJUSTING 

The  subject  of  readjustment  of  the  items  of  the 
budget  has  already  been  dealt  with  incidentally  several 
times,  but  its  importance  is  sufficient  to  warrant  further 
study  of  it.  Especially  by  those  who  have  made  a  bud- 
get for  the  first  time  and  are  conscientious  in  trying  to 
hold  to  it,  readjustment  may  be  magnified  into  some- 
thing of  undue  importance.  In  order  to  put  it  into  its 
due  place,  one  must  consider  why  it  is  ever  necessary, 
how  often  it  must  be  considered,  and  on  what  principles 
it  is  to  be  made.  Readjustment  does  not  necessarily 
show  poor  original  planning,  but  may  show  intelligent 
planning  from  day  to  day.  The  income  available  sets  a 
limit  to  expenditure;  the  budget  is  the  plan  for  the  most 
desirable  distribution  of  this  (necessarily)  limited 
amount.  What  are  the  circumstances  that  make  neces- 
sary a  change  in  the  plan  ? 

The  first  and  most  difficult  to  meet  is  a  falling  off 

in  the  income.    This  may  occur  without  any  fault  on  the 

part  of  an  individual — a  bank  fails,  a  business  concern 

goes   into  bankruptcy,   a  factory  is  closed,   or  sold  to 

113 


114         GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WORTH 

those  who  change  the  staff,  a  period  of  economic  de- 
pression throws  a  large  number  out  of  employment,  a 
prolonged  illness  means  resigning  a  position,  or  at  least 
going  without  salary  or  wage  for  a  time,  a  payment  of 
dividends  is  "passed,"  which  is  a  polite  way  of  saying 
that  it  is  never  made.  It  is  obvious  that  the  Savings 
fund  for  emergencies  is  important  in  such  cases,  and 
has  kept  many  a  family  from  serious  deprivation.  But 
even  where  the  Savings  fund  is  a  generous  one,  it  can- 
not wisely  be  used  to  replace  income  without  some  at- 
tempt to  cut  down  the  expenditure  planned  when  the 
income  seemed  secure. 

Here  it  is  impossible  to  be  definite  as  to  what  a  given 
family  should  do. .  Naturally,  health  must  be  pre- 
served. It  has  already  been  pointed  out  that  the  con- 
valescent may  wisely  spend  a  considerable  amount  to 
regain  health,  and  that  this  may  rightly  be  considered 
an  investment.  Clothing  cannot  be  sacrificed  too  much 
for  the  wage  or  salary  earners,  who  must  be  suitably 
dressed  for  their  work.  But  undoubtedly  poor  judg- 
ment is  used  in  this  matter  many  times.  The  current 
American  theory  seems  to  be  that  it  is  a  help  to  pros- 
perity to  seem  to  be  more  prosperous  than  one  is,  but 
such  a  theory  of  deceit  is  apt  to  have  more  bad  effect 
on  the  person  living  by  it  than  it  can  have  good  effect 
on  those  whom  he  hopes  to  impress.     Rent  is  an  item 


ON  READJUSTING  115 

that  often  cannot  be  cut  down  to  any  advantage,  if  the 
income  is  to  return  to  normal  soon.  The  cost  of  mov- 
ing is  usually  great,  not  only  in  the  actual  money  spent, 
but  in  the  damage  done  to  one's  possessions.  The  sav- 
ing necessary  can  generally  be  best  effected  by  cutting 
down  a  little  every  item  that  can  be  cut.  Savings  can- 
not be  made  during  such  a  period,  and  the  larger  the 
sum  that  was  to  be  saved,  the  less  must  be  cut  from  the 
other  items. 

The  psychology  of  the  situation  is  interesting.  To  be 
left  unexpectedly  without  an  expected  income  is  to  most 
people  depressing.  "Having  a  good  time"  is  a  natural 
reaction,  and  involves  for  most  people  the  spending  of 
money  that  certainly  ought  not  to  be  used  at  such  a 
time  if  there  is  any  other  way  to  conquer  depression. 
There  is  another  way;  making  a  game  of  seeing  how 
little  one  can  spend.  Especially  to  Americans  this  does 
not  sound  like  a  very  amusing  game,  but  the  determined 
cheerfulness  and  courage  of  many  a  woman  has  led  her 
family  to  play  it  with  zest.  It  is  the  woman — the  wife 
and  mother  or  the  sister  at  the  head  of  the  household — 
who  usually  has  this  part  to  play,  and  probably  the  ani- 
mation and  zeal  she  has  imparted  to  it  has  led  to  the 
accusation  that  women  enjoy  petty  economies,  some- 
what contradicting  the  other  accusation  that  women, 
having  no  sense  of  the  value  of  money,  enjoy  spending 


116         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

for  its  own  sake.  This  particular  game,  by  the  way, 
may  be  a  very  enjoyable  one  in  retrospect.  When  the 
family  is  once  more  normally  prosperous,  it  is  great  fun 
to  say:  "Do  you  remember  how — V  That  is,  it  can 
be  great  fun  if  the  family  considered  it  a  game  at  the 
time.  If  they  did  not,  they  are  more  apt  to  wish  to 
forget  such  disagreeable  expedients,  and  even  to  be 
ashamed  of  them. 

The  next  cause  for  readjustment  is  a  rise  in  prices 
that  really  lessens  the  income,  by  lessening  its  purchas- 
ing power.  Such  a  rise  may  be  general  and  continuing, 
as  always  happens  during  a  period  of  that  destruction 
we  call  war,  and  during  a  considerable  period  after  the 
war  is  over.  In  such  a  case  there  must  be  a  general  cut- 
ting down  everywhere  that  cutting  down  is  possible. 
That  this  can  be  done  was  proved  in  an  almost  spec- 
tacular way  during  the  Great  War  of  1914-18.  In 
every  country  families  found  that  despite  sharp  rises 
in  price  they  were  (at  least  at  first)  able  to  give  more 
to  help  those  in  desperate  need  than  they  had  ever 
thought  they  could  spare  in  times  when  their  income 
was  more  than  double  in  purchasing  power  that  of  the 
war  days.  And  at  least  in  these  United  States  the  sav- 
ings of  the  mass  of  the  people  increased  out  of  all  pro- 
portion to  any  rise  in  wages  or  salary  or — except  for 
the  comparatively  small  group  of  the  profiteers — in 
profits.     Not  only  were  the  enormous  amounts  of  the 


ON  READJUSTING  117 

Liberty  and  Victory  bond  issues  raised  largely  through 
the  subscriptions  of  those  who  had  never  bought  a  bond 
before,  but  the  deposits  in  the  savings  banks  increased 
heavily  at  the  same  time. 

True,  when  the  war  closed  and  the  people  looked  for 
a  return  of  the  old  conditions,  there  was  a  demoralizing 
relaxation  and  many  people  indulged  in  undue  spending. 
This  was  followed,  naturally,  by  a  reaction  in  what  has 
been  sometimes  (inaccurately)  called  the  "buyer's 
strike,"  when  producers  and  retailers  found  themselves 
unable  to  get  rid  of  their  merchandise  except  at  a  money 
loss.  And  both  the  relaxation  and  the  reaction  have  de- 
layed the  return  of  the  normal  conditions  of  peace.  All 
this  in  miniature  can  easily  happen  to  an  individual 
family,  unless  it  applies  clear  thinking  to  its  prob- 
lems. It  is  a  common  story.  Father  loses  his  job,  and 
the  family  rebelliously  accepts  simpler  food,  fewer  new 
clothes,  cheaper  amusements.  Then  Father  gets  a  new 
job  and  the  family,  with  an  injured  sense  of  having 
been  long  deprived  of  its  rights,  buys  an  automobile  or 
gets  a  lot  of  expensive  clothes  all  around.  But  not  the 
family  whose  members  are  trained  through  budget  mak- 
ing to  choices  that  will  make  for  their  greatest  happi- 
ness. The  budget  does  not  give  high  ideals  to  those 
who  have  none,  but  it  does  give  a  chance  to  every  little 
ideal  of  any  kind  to  poke  its  head  up  and  claim  its 
share  of  attention,  and  the  attention  given  to  them  all 


118         GETTING  YOUK  MONEY'S  WORTH 

is  unquestionably  greater  than  they  would  have  received 
without  this  chance. 

The  two  causes  already  dealt  with  were  general :  the 
third  cause  is  particular.  Some  one  item  may  demand 
unforeseen  expenditure.  The  rent  may  be  raised  before 
the  budget  year  is  over,  as  happened  to  uncounted 
thousands  in  1919  and  1920.  If  the  raise  in  rents  is 
general,  as  it  was  at  the  time  named,  and  because  there 
were  not  houses  or  rooms  enough  to  go  around,  then 
moving  to  a  lower-priced  house  or  apartment  may  not 
be  possible.  If  it  is  individual,  because  the  desirability 
of  the  neighborhood  has  been  enhanced  or  because  a 
new  landlord  thinks  he  can  get  more  from  his  tenants, 
then  moving  may  be  the  wisest  way  out.  That  must 
be  studied  carefully.  But  if  the  increased  rent  is  to 
be  paid,  either  the  income  must  be  increased  or  other 
items  must  be  deprived  of  some  of  their  allowance. 

The  increase  of  income  is  not  always  out  of  the 
question.  Perhaps  the  boys  of  the  family,  anxious  to 
stay  in  a  neighborhood  they  like,  can  themselves  earn  the 
extra  amount  by  Saturday  work  for  the  grocer  or  tak- 
ing paper  routes,  or  some  other  of  the  boy  methods  of 
earning  a  little  money.  In  many  places  there  are  simi- 
lar opportunities  open  to  the  girls.  But  it  must  be 
clearly  understood,  if  this  solution  is  adopted,  that  it  is 
the  deliberate  choice  of  the  boys  or  girls  who  are  to 
earn  the  extra  money,  and  that  the  money  when  earned 


ON  READJUSTING  119 

does  not  belong  to  them  but  to  the  landlord.  Their  pleas- 
ure is  in  continuing  in  the  present  home,  not  in  having 
extra  money  for  ribbons  or  the  movies.  And  it  is 
hardly  necessary  to  point  out  that  such  work  cannot 
be  undertaken  if  in  any  way  it  interferes  with  either 
health  or  education.  Where  it  does  not,  it  is  a  valuable 
educational  aid  in  itself,  teaching  the  children  not  only 
the  cost  of  money  in  time,  energy  and  intelligence,  but 
also  making  more  clear  their  own  share  in  the  coopera- 
tive life  of  the  household. 

Other  individual  emergencies  arise,  usually  a  single 
expense  rather  than  a  permanently  larger  one  like  in- 
creased rent.  A  dress  may  be  ruined  by  accident,  some 
expensive  piece  of  household  equipment  may  give  out 
without  warning,  a  storm  may  ruin  the  curtains  be- 
cause the  windows  were  left  open,  the  gas  company,  the 
electric  power  company  or  the  telephone  company  may 
increase  rates,  a  relative  or  friend  may  need  money 
help.  Life  offers  a  succession  of  such  happenings  to 
any  but  an  abnormal  family.  Emergencies  are  not 
something  to  lose  one's  head  over;  they  are  to  be  ex- 
pected as  part  of  the  game  of  living,  and  life  is  to  be 
suspected  if  it  does  not  provide  them.  They  come  often- 
est  in  matters  that  money  cannot  affect — in  the  clash 
of  temperaments,  the  need  for  compromise,  the  accept- 
ance of  some  physical  or  mental  limitation,  the  sacrifice 
necessary  for  true  cooperation  in  the  community.    When 


120         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WOETH 

the j  are  emergencies  affecting  expenditure,  they  must 
be  met  like  the  rise  in  Rent,  by  lessening  other  items  as 
judiciously  as  one  can. 

Minor  adjustments  can  be  made  without  any  general 
consultation,  but  the  larger  ones  should  be  discussed  as 
fully  as  the  original  apportionment.  It  cannot  be  said 
too  often  that  every  one  in  the  family  should  face  the 
necessity  of  choice,  and  help  to  choose.  This  will  not 
bring  the  millennium  of  contentment  as  by  magic,  but  it 
will  make  progress  toward  it  possible,  and  the  wise  ad- 
ministrator of  the  household  can  further  that  progress 
by  her  own  attitude  and  her  patient  reasoning  with  the 
impatience  so  natural  to  all  of  us  when  we  cannot  have 
what  we  want. 

The  time  to  make  readjustment  is  as  soon  as  the  un- 
foreseen expenditure  is  seen  as  inevitable.  If  only  minor 
causes  affect  the  change  in  items,  it  is  wise  for  the  ad- 
ministrator to  check  up  at  the  end  of  three  months  or 
six  months,  as  described  in  Chapter  VI  and  where  she 
feels  it  necessary,  to  call  a  family  conference. 

One  cause  of  readjustment  remains,  the  very  pleas- 
ant one  of  an  unexpected  increase  in  income.  What 
shall  be  done  when  that  comes  ?  We  all  know  from  ob- 
servation that  frequently  what  is  done  is  to  indulge  in 
a  very  orgy  of  spending.  Under  such  circumstances  the 
family  and  perhaps  every  individual  member  feels — 
rather  than  thinks — that  it  or  he  or  she  should  at  once 


ON  KEADJUSTING  121 

get  something  long  desired.  A  natural  feeling,  and 
one  to  be  gratified  if  it  can  be  managed.  But  the 
difficulty  of  course  is  that  the  family  wants  a  great 
many  more  things  than  that  extra  money  can  possibly 
buy.  And  probably  every  member  of  it  old  enough  to 
have  experience  in  what  can  be  had  in  exchange  for 
money  could  spend  all  of  it  on  himself  or  herself  alone 
without  any  difficulty  if  selfishness  directed  the  choices. 
There  is  only  one  way  to  get  what  everybody  wants 
most — budget  the  added  amount,  readjusting  the  old 
budget  in  the  combined  light  of  experience  and  desire. 

Yet  even  though  their  choice  is  their  right,  how  can 
one  refrain  from  a  word  of  warning?  There  are  two 
items  that  call  imperatively  for  their  share  of  the  in- 
crease. Savings  and  Gifts  for  the  public  good  are  con- 
sidered first,  to  be  sure  that  they  are  increased  propor- 
tionally before  any  other  item  gets  a  dollar.  And  for 
each,  but  especially  for  Savings,  one  can  hardly  help  a 
special  plea.  It  is  so  much  easier  to  increase  them  when 
the  income  is  increased  than  to  do  so  by  cutting  down 
expenditure  under  the  old  income.  And  they  are  grate- 
ful for  every  little  help.  At  4%  even  an  added  $500 
will  bring  in  $20  a  year,  and  if  the  interest  is  allowed  to 
accumulate  half  yearly,  in  five  years  the  sum  will  be 
$623.09,  in  ten  years,  $740.12. 

If  the  first  impulse  of  the  family  is  to  move  to  a 
more  expensive  home,  can  they  not  postpone  the  move 


122         GETTING  YOUK  MONEY'S  WORTH 

for  a  year  and  tuck  away  that  extra  rent  in  Savings? 
Unless  the  family  has  suffered  actual  deprivation,  has 
it  not  been  fairly  happy  in  the  present  home?  Why 
abandon  it  so  hastily?  If  the  house  is  owned,  but  is 
too  small  for  the  family  needs,  cannot  the  selling  of  it 
or  the  planning  of  the  new  ell  wait  while  the  family  dis- 
cusses every  detail  and  enjoys  to  the  full  the  pleasure  of 
planning  ?  If  Clothing  calls  with  a  loud  voice,  naming 
furs  and  silk  stockings  and  French  hats  and  custom- 
made  shoes,  is  it  not  well  to  figure  a  little  before  answer- 
ing the  call?  Clothing  must  have  something,  by  all 
means,  but  it  is  apt  to  become  too  greedy. 

The  consideration  of  the  budget  calls  for  thinking,  and 
the  pleasant  emotions  roused  by  the  new  possibilities  of 
more  money  need  not  die  because  the  mind  gets  to 
work  a  little.  Anticipation  is  a  large  part  of  pleasure. 
The  family  gets  a  lot  of  fun  out  of  feeling  rich  for  a 
little  while,  even  if  the  calm  consideration  of  the  actual 
figures  of  the  budget  brings  them  back  to  the  realization 
that  though  their  limits  have  been  set  a  little  farther  out, 
they  are  very  decidedly  limits  still. 


IX 

THE  INCOME  BESIDES  MONEY 

In  the  budget  the  income  of  the  family  represented 
by  money  is  all  that  can  be  noted,  yet  the  family  must 
never  forget  that  it  has  other  income  on  which  it  should 
reckon.  Every  member  of  the  family  has  time,  energy, 
experience  and  ability.  In  time  every  one  theoretically 
has  the  same  amount — twenty-four  hours  a  day — but 
as  each  person  has  a  certain  amount  mortgaged  to  sleep, 
eating,  dressing,  and  either  education  or  vocation,  the 
margin  of  free  time  left  to  one  individual  may  differ 
much  from  that  left  to  another.  And  in  the  use  of  the 
margin  what  would  be  for  one  person  sheer  waste  of 
time  may  for  another  prove  of  great  creative  value.  It 
is  comparatively  easy  to  judge  whether  a  person  wastes 
time  on  a  manual  task,  though  not  always  so  easy  to 
prove  how  far  the  task  itself  is  worth  doing.  It  is  hard 
to  judge  when  time  spent  in  preparation  for  a  piece  of 
creative  work  is  well  spent.  These  problems  are  for 
the  individual  concerned.  If  he  or  she  is  to  get  far, 
honesty  in  facing  the  question  is  essential. 

It  is  for  example  easy  to  criticize  the  artist  who 
lounges  and  smokes  all  day,  and  once  in  a  while  paints 

123 


124         GETTING  YOUB  MONEY'S  WORTH 

a  picture.  Perhaps  he  is  really  lazy  and  is  making  an 
excuse  of  the  necessity  for  being  "ready"  when  he  puts 
brush  to  canvas.  Perhaps,  on  the  other  hand,  he  is 
quite  justified,  and  that  is  the  only  way  he,  with  his 
abilities  and  temperament,  can  do  his  best  work.  It  is 
easy  too  to  condemn  the  housewife  who  is  constantly 
and  complacently  telling  that  she  is  not  a  slave  to  her 
work,  and  finds  plenty  of  free  time  to  work  or  play  out- 
side her  own  home,  when  one  knows  that  her  family  has 
hastily  prepared  meals,  with  extravagant  marketing  and 
perhaps  even  poor  cooking,  that  her  children's  clothing 
shows  lack  of  care  in  repair  and  cleaning,  that  the  house 
is  untidy  and  not  overclean,  and  that  the  family  is 
always  in  debt.  But  it  is  not  so  easy  to  judge  of  the 
housewife  who,  with  limited  physical  strength  and  so 
of  working  time,  intelligently  omits  or  neglects  some 
of  the  household  routine  that  seems  to  most  of  us  essen- 
tial in  order  that  she  may  have  time  free  for  what  rests 
her  and  makes  life  livable.  If  people  keep  out  of  money 
debt,  and  in  no  way  injure  themselves  or  their  chil- 
dren morally,  it  is  hard  to  justify  public  opinion  in 
condemning  them  for  letting  the  children  go  barefoot 
or  having  no  shades  at  their  windows  or  eating  in  the 
kitchen.  If  a  family  has  decided  what  its  own  values 
are,  it  has  a  right  to  live  according  to  its  own  scale — 
always  granting  that  it  has  met  its  own  debt  to  society. 


THE  INCOME  BESIDES  MONEY  125 

And  it  is  worth  noting  that  the  worst  failures  in  any 
community  are  oftener  those  of  families  who  have  made 
every  effort  to  live  like  their  much  richer  neighbors  than 
of  families  who  have  disregarded  public  opinion  in  mat- 
ters (other  than  morals)  that  affect  social  standing. 

Time  and  energy  have  to  be  considered  together,  and 
used  as  each  family  or  individual  judges  best.  Ability 
and  experience  also  go  hand  in  hand,  and  on  them  the 
family  or  individual  should  draw  freely.  Both  improve 
by  use,  and  both  make  time  and  energy  more  fruitful. 
All  four — time,  energy,  ability,  experience — are  ex- 
pressed in  an  income  known  to  economists  as  "the  labor 
income."  Every  individual  does  some  things  for  him- 
self that  he  might  get  some  one  else  to  do.  There  are 
a  few  people  who  have  maids  or  valets  to  care  for  their 
clothing,  dress  them  and  generally  relieve  them  of  that 
"buttoning  and  unbuttoning"  that  the  Frenchman  of 
the  story  found  so  wearing  that  he  killed  himself  to 
escape  it.  But  only  an  imbecile  or  a  helpless  invalid 
does  no  part  of  the  work  for  himself.  And  the  over- 
whelming majority  of  people  not  only  dress  themselves 
and  take  care  of  their  own  clothing,  but  count  on  them- 
selves or  some  member  of  their  family  to  clean  their 
clothing,  mend  it,  even  make  it.  All  this  work  is  labor 
income.  So  is  that  of  the  household  processes  of  clean- 
ing, caring  for  food,  cooking,  sewing,  dish-washing,  bed- 


126         GETTING  YOUB  MONEY'S  WOKTH 

making,  washing  of  clothing  and  house  linen,  and  the 
thousand  minor  tasks  that  claim  the  attention  of  every 
housekeeper. 

This  labor  income  of  the  household  routine  is  con- 
tributed chiefly  by  the  woman  at  the  head  of  the  house, 
often,  and  especially  in  large  families,  with  the  assist- 
ance of  the  other  women  of  the  family.  In  pioneer  days 
there  was  a  large  contribution  from  the  men  and  boys — 
the  "chores"  that  are  still  an  important  element  in 
country  life.  Wood  to  saw  and  split  and  to  carry  to  the 
wood  box,  water  to  bring  from  the  well,  the  cows  to 
milk,  the  horse  to  feed,  the  paths  to  clear — these  are 
ever-recurring  and  insistent  tasks.  As  city  life  or  city 
conditions  become  established,  the  wood  changes  to  coal, 
to  be  brought  from  the  cellar  to  the  kitchen  stove;  the 
furnace  is  to  be  cared  for,  but  there  is  no  water  to 
bring,  no  cow  to  milk,  no  horse  to  feed.  Conditions 
change  still  more  and  the  kitchen  stove  uses  gas  from 
a  pipe  or  electricity  carried  on  wires,  and  the  apartment 
is  steam  heated,  from  a  central  plant  the  householder 
never  sees.  Even  the  "tinkering"  necessary  in  any 
home — a  shelf  to  put  up,  a  chair  to  mend,  a  bucket 
handle  to  replace — is  often  better  done  by  the  janitor 
of  the  apartment  or  the  handyman  of  the  neighborhood 
than  by  the  man  of  the  house.  The  janitor  or  the 
handyman  has  the  tools,  and  a  place  in  which  to  work, 
and  the  facility  that  comes  from  practice.     And  when 


THE  INCOME  BESIDES  MONEY  127 

the  janitor  changes  in  type  and  no  longer  does  odd  jobs, 
and  the  handyman  who  works  for  a  low  wage  disappears, 
then  the  carpenter,  the  upholsterer  and  the  tinsmith  re- 
place them.  The  money  cost  is  not  great — only  25  cents 
for  putting  up  the  shelf,  only  50  cents  for  mending  the 
chair,  only  15  cents  for  mending  the  handle.  But  90 
cents  of  the  family  income  goes  to  pay  these  little  items, 
formerly  paid  by  the  labor  income  of  the  family,  and 
presently  these  conditions  make  it  possible  for  the 
workers — who  need  and  should  have  more  money,  to 
meet  the  rising  costs  of  living — to  charge  $1.80  for  the 
work,  and  the  family  wonders  where  its  money  goes. 
Any  household  task  that  is  given  up  by  the  members  of 
it  costs  money  that  seems  to  most  of  them  unjustified. 
They  quite  commonly  declaim  against  the  "robbery"  of 
those  who  do  what  they  could  so  easily  do  for  them- 
selves, and  which,  incidentally,  they  would  be  entirely 
unwilling  to  do  for  others  at  the  price  they  themselves 
are  asked  to  pay. 

The  economic  effect  of  this  on  the  family  is  bad, 
since  the  income  is  lessened  without  due  return,  but 
there  is  a  moral  effect  too.  Where  is  the  cooperation  in 
this  cooperative  group  ?  Father  and  Mother  do  it  all, 
but  even  there  only  too  often  the  cooperation  is  imper- 
fect. Father  is  busy  all  day  working  hard  to  earn 
money  to  pay  the  family  bills.  When  he  comes  home 
at  night  he  is  tired,  and  he  does  not  want  to  bother  even 


128         GETTING  YOUK  MONEY'S  WORTH 

to  put  up  a  shelf.  He  works  hard  enough  to  pay  a  car- 
penter to  do  that.  But  far  more  than  this,  he  does  not 
want  to  bother  with  the  problems  Mother  has  to  face 
in  spending  the  income  or  in  the  education  and  training 
of  the  children.  That  is  all  her  job:  why  can't  she 
let  him  alone,  when  he  is  slaving  as  hard  as  he  knows 
how  to  get  that  weekly  pay  envelope  or  that  monthly 
check,  or  that  quarterly  share  of  profits?  So  Father 
is  aggrieved  because  he  is  giving  so  much  and  is  asked 
to  give  more,  Mother  is  aggrieved  because  the  whole 
responsibility  is  put  upon  her  and  yet  she  is  criticized 
sometimes  for  the  way  she  exercises  it.  And  in  such  a 
family  the  children  are  pretty  sure  to  be  aggrieved 
because  they  cannot  have  all  they  want,  and  to  be 
peevish  if  they  are  asked  to  help  in  the  household 
tasks. 

The  whole  situation  is  wrong.  Every  member  of  the 
family  should  have  its  share  in  the  household  tasks  as 
soon  as  it  is  old  enough  to  help  clear  or  set  the  table  or 
to  empty  the  wastebasket.  Soon  the  child  can  help 
with  the  dishwashing,  make  its  own  bed,  help  with  the 
cleaning.  Later  cooking  becomes  a  possibility.  In  the 
country  life  where  so  much  of  the  work  was  out  of  doors 
and  in  winter  in  severe  cold,  and  the  boys  by  their  form 
of  clothing  could  work  more  easily  and  yet  be  duly  pro- 
tected, the  general  division  of  outdoor  work  to  the  boys 
and  indoor  work  to  the  girls  was  a  natural  one.     But 


THE  INCOME  BESIDES  MONEY  129 

when  the  conditions  of  living  sweep  away  the  outdoor 
tasks,  the  boys  should  not  be  deprived  of  their  privilege 
in  sharing  the  family  work.  Bedmaking  and  dishwash- 
ing are  not  for  any  fundamental  reason  "girls'  work;" 
where  many  are  gathered  under  one  roof,  as  in  hotel  or 
institution,  that  work  is  quite  as  frequently  done  by  men 
as  by  women. 

The  child's  strength  and  ability  must  be  taken  into 
consideration,  but  in  the  household  what  he  or  she 
likes  or  wants  to  do  should  not  rule  the  division  of  labor. 
Every  child  should  want  to  do  his  share.  It  is  indeed 
a  desire  that  shows  early  in  most  children.  Sometimes 
it  is  discouraged  by  the  busy  mother  who  cannot  be 
bothered  by  such  untrained  assistants  and  does  not  re- 
member that  by  making  matters  a  little  easier  for  her- 
self now  she  is  not  only  making  them  harder  in  the 
future,  when  the  trained  child  would  be  a  real  help,  but 
is  depriving  the  child  of  a  very  important  part  of  its 
education. 

Only  too  many  times  where  a  paid  household  employee 
is  employed  to  do  the  "housework"  the  family  consider 
it  beneath  their  dignity  to  do  anything  that  falls  in  her 
province.  Why  answer  the  door  when  the  bell  rings  ? 
Mary  is  there  to  do  that.  To  be  sure,  it  may  interrupt 
Mary  at  a  time  when  the  interruption  means  a  loss  to 
the  family — a  loss  of  time,  of  material  or  of  temper  and 
so  of  peace  in  the  household  atmosphere.    And  the  child 


130         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S 'WORTH 

who  is  idling  or  playing  would  lose  little  by  running  to 
the  door  and  would  gain  something  in  social  or  business 
experience.  Why  help  clear  the  table  ?  That  is  Mary's 
job.  It  would  shorten  her  hours  of  labor,  to  be  sure — 
and  if  the  modern  industrial  basis  is  adopted,  it  could 
free  some  of  her  time  for  more  skilled  work.  But  the 
child  would  be  doing  servant's  work,  which  is  unthink- 
able. Why  have  each  child  make  his  or  her  own  bed 
and  care  for  the  bedroom?  But  to  go  on  is  needless. 
There  are  thousands  of  families  where  the  cooperation 
is  effective  under  any  circumstances,  because  the  princi- 
ple of  right  family  living  is  established  in  the  minds  of 
the  heads  of  the  family.  But  there  are  tens  of  thou- 
sands where  thoughtlessly  the  principles  are  disre- 
garded, and  it  is  these  families  that  are  failing  to  get 
their  due  measure  of  contentment  from  life. 

It  is  not  easy  for  any  one  to  accept  deliberately  a  de- 
crease in  money  income.  But  if  Father  has  to  work  so 
hard  that  he  looks  on  his  home  only  as  a  place  where 
doing  nothing  will  help  him  recover  from  exhaustion, 
is  it  not  the  part  of  wisdom  as  well  as  of  affection  to 
consider  whether  he  could  find  some  less  exhausting  task, 
where  his  being  able  to  share  the  family  life  would  more 
than  compensate  for  the  simpler  living  made  necessary  ? 

Social  ambition  is  probably  Mother's  chief  tempta- 
tion to  over-spending  of  her  non-money  assets,  as  well 
as  to  over-spending  in  dollars  and  cents.     In  former 


THE  INCOME  BESIDES  MONEY  131 

days  many  a  woman  wore  herself  out  keeping  up  a 
reputation  as  a  "good  housekeeper."  She  scrubbed  and 
washed  and  sewed  and  crocheted  and  embroidered  and 
cooked  and  polished  until  her  tired  nerves  made  her 
irritable  and  utterly  unable  to  deal  judiciously  with  the 
problems  of  discipline  and  education  that  were  of  funda- 
mental importance  to  her  children.  Nowadays  the 
stress  has  changed  a  little.  Less  time  to  scrubbing  and 
polishing,  more  to  the  making  of  clothing  that  looks 
like  that  of  a  Fifth  Avenue  shop — or  as  near  it  as  one 
can  get — the  elaborate  decoration  of  the  house,  the  com- 
plications of  fancy  cookery  for  the  entertainment  of 
one's  social  group.  But  the  result  is  the  same.  When 
Mother  has  not  time  to  hear  all  about  Janet's  quarrel 
with  Edith;  or  Tommy's  fight  over  the  marbles  when 
Jack  and  Ted  tried  to  cheat  him,  or  to  listen  to  David's 
tearful  and  confused  tale  of  how  the  teacher  didn't 
understand  about  his  'rithmetic — if  she  has  not  time  to 
listen  and  to  reason  patiently,  to  explain  and  to  bring 
out  the  ethics  of  these  situations,  then  the  family  life 
is  badly  planned. 

Money  buys  a  good  deal,  and  we  all  need  it  much  and 
want  it  more.  But  money  cannot  buy  the  spiritual  or 
the  mental — the  things  most  worth  while  in  life.  We 
all  know  it,  we  all  repeat  it  glibly,  but  we  are  all  at 
times  led  to  forget  it  in  our  practice.  The  principle  of 
the  budget — the  plan,  the  facing  definitely  at  a  given 


132         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WOETH 

time  what  one  can  do  and  what  one  wants  to  do — 
is  as  valuable  regarding  the  income  that  cannot  be  ex- 
pressed in  dollars  and  cents  as  it  is  in  that  income  re- 
corded on  the  Budget  card. 


CONSERVING  AS  AN  ASSET 

The  careful  use  of  the  things  that  money  can  buy 
can  hardly  be  classed  under  labor  income,  though  some- 
times it  means  an  expenditure  of  labor.  In  discussing 
the  Clothing  budget  the  question  of  the  care  of  clothing 
has  been  considered,  and  the  fact  pointed  out  that 
proper  care  makes  the  money  invested  in  Clothing 
stretch  much  farther  than  where  careless  treatment  de- 
stroys or  deteriorates  the  wardrobe.  What  has  been 
said  on  that  subject  is  true  in  principle  everywhere. 
Little  repairs  made  as  soon  as  they  occur  make  big 
repairs  unnecessary.  A  household  where  there  is  no 
waste  whatever  and  no  careless  use  is  so  rare  that  few 
have  ever  seen  one,  yet  curiously  many  of  those  who 
seem  to  onlookers  most  wasteful  pride  themselves  on  the 
fact  that  they  never  waste  anything ! 

The  first  waste,  chronologically,  is  in  buying  too 
much.  If  the  house  or  apartment  is  too  large — a  con- 
dition more  common  twenty  years  ago  than  now — 
money  is  wasted'  in  the  maintenance,  care  and  repair  of 
unneeded  space.     If  the  wardrobe  is  unnecessarily  full, 

133 


134         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

there  is  the  double  waste  of  discarding  while  still  good 
what  has  gone  hopelessly  out  of  style  and  of  the  de- 
terioration of  articles  lying  unused  in  drawers  or  hang- 
ing in  closets.  Rubber  overshoes  and  the  rubber  on 
sport  shoes  deteriorate  until  the  shoes  are  useless,  if  they 
are  left  standing  for  several  years,  even  if  they  are 
never  worn.  The  silk  of  even  an  expensive  umbrella 
may  crack  along  the  seams  when  it  is  left  carefully 
guarded  in  the  corner  of  the  closet,  as  too  good  for  ordi- 
nary use,  and  many  a  sad  surprise  has  lain  in  wait  for 
the  young  woman  who  carefully  reserved  a  pair  of  silk 
stockings  for  several  years,  brought  them  out  for  a 
great  occasion,  and  had  them  go  to  pieces  when  she  tried 
to  put  them  on.  Pure  well-woven  silk  does  not  deteri- 
orate, as  those  who  still  have  their  great-grandmother's 
heavy  silk  gowns  can  testify,  but  few  silks  to-day  are 
safe  to  test  in  this  way,  and  the  amateur  finds  it  hard 
to  make  sure  of  quality,  especially  when  the  silk  is 
bought  already  made  up.  Good  cotton  and  linen  will 
not  lose  their  strength  of  thread,  but  if  they  lie  long 
they  will  grow  yellow,  and  labor  has  to  be  used  to 
whiten  them  again.  Wool  has  its  special  danger  from 
moths.  The  annual  money  loss  in  this  country  from 
destruction  by  moths  has  never  been  and  can  never  be 
calculated,  but  every  year  in  thousands  of  households 
such  loss  occurs.  This  is  not  always  due  to  careless- 
ness, but  often  to  lack  of  knowledge.      The  garment 


CONSERVING  AS  AN  ASSET  135 

properly  cleaned  before  it  is  put  away  ana  properly 
protected  is  safe  from  moths  and  other  insects.  It 
takes  care  and  thought  to  accomplish  this,  but  the  money 
saved  is  income  to  the  family.  Where  it  is  difficult 
to  clean  and  store  properly  at  home  a  heavy  article  like 
a  fur  coat  or  an  ulster,  it  is  the  part  of  wisdom  to 
pay  for  having  it  stored  by  experts.  Such  payment  is 
a  form  of  insurance. 

The  household  equipment  requires  the  same  care. 
If  the  furniture  is  kept  well-cleaned,  and  small  repairs 
are  made  as  soon  as  their  need  is  seen,  the  life  of  the 
furniture  is  greatly  prolonged.  Polished  wood  sur- 
faces do  not  need  the  expensive  process  of  refinishing 
often  if  they  are  kept  in  condition  by  careful  use  and 
the  cleaning  and  polishing  that  is  done  at  home.  Up- 
holstered chairs  and  sofas  can  be  cleaned  at  home  if 
the  dust  is  not  allowed  to  accumulate  too  long.  The 
handy-box  that  is  part  of  the  equipment  of  any  careful 
family  has  a  few  gimp  tacks,  and  when  the  gimp  on 
the  chair  tears  loose  for  an  inch  or  two,  it  is  at  once 
tacked  back  into  place,  the  needle  mending  any  tears 
in  the  gimp.  If  the  loose  gimp  is  left,  very  soon  there 
will  be  a  longer  strip  torn,  and  the  gimp  may  be  beyond 
mending.  Then  not  only  must  one  spend  money  for 
new  gimp,  but  time  and  energy  in  finding  gimp  to 
match,  or  suitable  new  gimp  for  the  whole  chair.  If 
a  rug  is  torn,  or  begins  to  wear,  skilful  darning  may 


136         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

make  it  as  good  as  new  when  continued  wear  without 
mending  means  soon  discarding  the  rug.  Repairs  can- 
not always  be  made  at  home,  of  course.  In  the  case  of 
an  Oriental  rug,  for  example/  a  worn  spot  needs  the 
expert.  But  if  the  rug  is  repaired  as  soon  as  the  worn 
spot  appears,  or  as  soon  as  the  edge  begins  to  ravel,  it 
can  be  made  as  strong  as  new.  The  skill  of  a  good 
Oriental  rug  mender  is  something  to  envy.  A  beauti- 
ful piece  of  china  or  glass  may  when  broken  warrant 
riveting,  and  this  cannot  be  done  at  home.  To  be  sure, 
in  America  one  rarely  sees  a  riveted  piece  in  use,  a 
common  enough  sight  on  European  tables.  Their  point 
of  view  is  that  the  utility  of  the  piece  is  in  no  way  in- 
jured and  its  beauty,  although  impaired,  not  destroyed. 
Our  point  of  view  only  too  often  is  that  if  the  piece 
cannot  be  mended  so  that  it  will  look  like  new,  it  is 
good  only  for  the  ash  heap  or  can. 

The  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture 
through  its  Bureau  of  Home  Economics  publishes  much 
valuable  information  about  the  best  methods  of  care  and 
repair  of  equipment  and  clothing.  Their  small  pam- 
phlets are  sold  at  a  nominal  cost.  They  give  the  result 
of  experiments  conducted  in  a  way  practical  for  the 
household,  and  a  postal  card  to  the  U.  S.  Superintendent 
of  Documents,  Washington,  D.  C,  will  bring  a  price 
list  of  them. 

Kitchen  utensils   offer   a   great  temptation  to  most 


CONSERVING  AS  AN  ASSET  137 

housekeepers.  It  is  so  pleasant  to  have  attractive  ones, 
fresh  and  shining,  and  as  many  as  one  wants.  Yet  very 
often  tin  utensils  are  used  so  little,  or  dried  so  care- 
lessly, that  they  rust  and  become  useless  before  they 
have  begun  to  justify  their  purchase.  Steel  or  iron  is 
either  eaten  into  by  rust  or  requires  a  high  labor  cost 
to  keep  it  clean.  There  are  some  utensils  well  worth 
having  that  can  be  used  for  a  single  purpose  and  that 
not  a  daily  one — the  bread  mixer,  for  example,  or  the 
food  chopper.  But  in  selecting  others  it  is  well  to 
consider  their  possibilities  of  varied  use.  A  glass  bread 
pan  can  be  used  for  a  cake,  any  scalloped  dish  or  any 
baked  pudding  just  as  well  as  for  bread,  whereas  the 
tin  bread  pan  can  be  used  only  for  bread  and  cake.  It 
is  certainly  economy  of  labor  to  have  good  tools  in  the 
kitchen,  and  enough  of  them,  but  it  is  not  economy  of 
money  or  labor  income  to  have  too  many  tools,  so  that 
those  little  used  either  lessen  in  value  or  use  time  and 
energy  to  keep  them  in  condition.  Most  housewives 
would  be  surprised,  and  disagreeably,  if  they  knew  the 
total  of  the  expenditure  represented  in  their  kitchen 
equipment,  including  what  is  hidden  away  in  cupboard 
or  store-room  or  cellar  or  attic.  To  inventory  it  and 
find  this  sum  may  be  a  waste  of  time,  but  the  current 
account  card  of  Care  of  House-Furnishings  should  be 
watched  closely.  And  it  is  not  at  all  a  bad  idea  to 
overhaul  the  whole  equipment  once  a  year,  setting  aside 


138         GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WORTH 

that  not  really  used  to  be  given  to  less  fortunate  neigh- 
bors or  sold  to  the  junk  man. 

Household  linen  is  another  of  the  temptations  of 
the  housekeeper.  There  is  no  pleasanter  sight  to  her 
than  piles  of  snowy  sheets  and  pillowcases  on  her 
shelves,  and  piles  of  damask  napkins  and  tablecloths, 
or  of  exquisite  centerpieces  and  doilies,  in  her  drawers. 
Yet  the  initial  cost  of  these  is  often  considerable.  If 
she  has  in  her  linen  closets  and  drawers  $10  worth  more 
than  she  needs  (even  in  an  emergency)  of  bed  linen, 
and  $15  worth  more  than  she  needs  in  table  linen,  that 
is  not  serious,  but  yet  it  is  deducting  from  the  family 
income  at  least  50  cents  a  year  (4%  interest  on  $25) 
and  that  50  cents  might  give  greater  satisfaction  in  some 
other  form. 

A  special  method  of  conservation  of  table  linen  is 
the  use  for  part  of  the  time  of  a  less  expensive  kind 
than  the  family  uses  as  a  general  thing.  Linen  damask 
napkins  and  tablecloths  are  expensive  not  only  in  first 
purchase,  but  in  the  cost  of  laundering,  since  their 
beauty  is  brought  out  only  by  long  slow  ironing.  If 
the  family  has  used  them  for  all  three  meals,  will  they 
not  be  content  to  use  them  for  dinner  only,  and  at  the 
other  two  meals  to  use  doilies  or  runners  instead  of  the 
tablecloth  ?  Napkins  of  Japanese  toweling  (to  be  had 
in  many  good  patterns  in  blue  and  white),  of  cotton 
crepe  or  of  unbleached  muslin,  wit'h  the  rolled  hem 


CONSEKVING  AS  AN  ASSET  139 

whipped  in  color  and  perhaps  a  decoration  in  cross- 
stitch,  are  very  cheap  compared  to  damask.  The  doilies 
or  runners  can  be  of  similar  material,  or  of  other  simple 
kinds.  The  expense  of  laundering  them  is  slight  com- 
pared to  the  damask,  and  the  table  can  be  most  attrac- 
tive with  doilies.  The  doily  sets  made  of  an  oil- 
cloth stenciled  in  gay  color  are  money-saving  and 
labor-saving.  If  there  is  a  summer  outdoor  dining 
porch  they  are  particularly  appropriate  there,  but  in- 
doors they  are  by  no  means  undesirable  for  breakfast 
and  informal  meals.  The  use  of  any  of  these  may  add 
temporarily  to  the  amount  of  table  equipment  to  be 
cared  for,  but  will  lengthen  the  life  of  the  expensive 
damask  enough  to  justify  that. 

The  specific  instances  given  are  only  examples  chosen 
as  obvious  among  a  multitude.  There  is  many  a  detail 
of  family  living  that  is  taken  for  granted  which,  if 
examined  by  this  family  or  that  family,  would  fail  to 
prove  its  share  against  other  claims  on  the  money  or 
the  time  it  costs.  If  the  family  is  sure  the  cost  is  justi- 
fied, well  and  good.  Undoubtedly  there  are  families 
to  whom  the  use  of  good  damask  at  every  meal  is  worth 
more  than  a  few  new  records  for  the  Victrola  or  a  little 
more  money  to  give  to  the  Hospital  fund  or — whatever 
the  choice  may  be.  But  there  are  comparatively  few 
families  with  large  enough  incomes  to  do  all  these  things 
and  yet  not  leave  the  others  undone. 


140         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

So  far  the  argument  has  been  on  the  selfish  basis  of 
getting  what  the  family  wants  most  in  return  for  its 
expenditure,  but  there  is  another  consideration  that 
should  not  be  ignored.  Everything  that  is  grown  and 
gathered  or  made  has  cost  human  labor,  some  part  of 
a  human  life.  That  the  labor  should  be  adequately 
paid  in  money  that  can  be  translated  into  good  living 
conditions  should  be  our  concern  just  so  far  as  we-  in- 
dividually can  affect  it  anywhere.  But  even  though 
the  laborer  received  his  just  share  of  the  money  return, 
that  does  not  justify  destroying  the  product  of  his 
hands,  his  work,  his  living,  by  careless  or  destructive 
ways.  There  are  still  people  who  tell  you  it  is  "good 
for  trade"  that  those  who  have  money  should  spend 
wastefully,  but  no  modern  economist  would  for  a  mo- 
ment accept  that  doctrine.  There  is  enough  really  use- 
ful work  to  be  done  to  occupy  all  the  workers  in  the 
world  for  a  reasonable  number  of  working  hours,  and 
to  pay  them  a  wage  enabling  them  to  live  in  comfort. 
If  our  system  of  distribution  is  as  yet  so  defective  that 
some  of  the  workers  can  find  no  Work,  others  are  badly 
overworked,  some  useful  things  are  not  produced  in 
sufficient  amounts,  and  useless  and  wasteful  production 
still  goes  on,  then  we  must  learn  how  to  reorganize  our 
system.  To  waste  any  part  of  the  labor  already  ex- 
pended may  help  an  individual  or  two  somewhere,  but 


CONSEKVING  AS  AN  ASSET  141 

harms  society  as  a  whole,  and  so  in  the  end  each  member 
of  it. 

To  many  brought  up  to  the  more  lavish  spending 
of  to-day  the  horror  of  waste  that  our  grandfathers  and 
grandmothers  felt,  and  which  still  lives  in  some  of  their 
descendants,  seems  a  laughable  petty  economy,  an  evi- 
dence that  they  did  not  know  how  to  get  all  the  fun  out 
of  life.  But  really  back  of  that  horror  of  waste  lay 
the  consciousness  of  what  the  thing  had  cost,  not  only 
in  money  but  also  in  human  toil.  When  they  cared  for 
a  coat  or  a  gown,  darned  the  tears,  made  it  last,  back 
of  their  care  lay  the  memory  of  how  much  time  and 
labor  it  had  taken  to  care  for  the  sheep,  shear  them, 
clean  and  card  the  wool,  spin  the  thread,  dye  it  and 
weave  the  cloth.  They  had  seen  all  this  as  part  of 
their  home  life.  Grandson  or  granddaughter  has  not 
these  processes  as  part  of  the  common  memory  of  child- 
hood, and  thinks  of  the  cost  of  the  cloth  as  the  money 
paid  over  the  counter.  But  the  cloth  still  cost  the  toil 
of  the  shepherd,  the  carter,  the  cleaner  and  the  carder, 
tfhe  dyer  and  the  weaver,  even  though  machines  helped 
most  of  them,  and  in  addition  it  has  cost  its  share  of  the 
overhead  of  the  factory,  of  the  work  of  the  railroad 
employees,  of  the  truck  driver,  of  the  pay  of  the  whole- 
saler, the  jobber  and  the  retailer.-  It  needs  more  imagi- 
nation than  it  did  once  to  visualize  all  this  and  to 


142         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

realize  it  as  a  factor  in  one's  life,  but  imagination  is  a 
gift  the  fairies  give  to  every  child,  to  be  fostered  and 
trained  by  those  who  see  its  importance.  "Waste  not, 
want  not"  is  as  practical  a  lesson  to  teach  the  next  gen- 
eration as  it  was  for  the  generation  of  our  grandfathers 
or  great-grandfathers.  So  is :  "What  you  are  using  cost 
something  in  human  labor — human  life." 


XI 
ON  INVENTORIES 

To  make  a  complete  and  accurate  inventory  of  the 
property  of  a  family  is  not  an  easy  task  and  is  one  that 
consumes  an  amount  of  time  that  few  will  care  to  assign 
to  it.  To  run  the  household  on  a  real  business  basis  not 
only  should  there  be  such  an  inventory,  but  at  least 
yearly  it  should  be  revised,  the  proper  depreciation 
charges  deducted,  and  the  money  value  of  the  total 
thus  be  brought  up  to  date.  But  those  who  keep  the 
real  purpose  of  household  accounting  in  mind  will  not 
think  such  a  task  a  necessary  one.  There  are  some  to 
whom  it  would  be  interesting  and  amusing  enough  to 
justify  them  in  doing  it,  but  they  are  not  many.  Those 
who  have  had  occasion  to  inquire  the  cost  of  such  an 
inventory,  made  by  the  individuals  or  firms  who  do 
such  work  for  those  who  wish  it  as  supplementary  to 
their  fire  insurance,  are  probably  amazed  and  perhaps 
disgusted  at  the  price  charged.  But  if  they  once  try 
to  do  the  task  for  themselves  with  equal  care,  even  with 
their  advantage  of  knowledge  as  to  original  cost,  they 
will  generally  speedily  decide  that  the  price  is  reason- 
able.    It  is,  in  colloquial  phrase,  a  pernickety  job. 

143 


144         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

Yet  it  is  quite  evident  that  one  is  in  far  better  posi- 
tion to  collect  insurance  in  case  of  fire  if  some  list 
exists.  The  inventory  for  this  purpose  need  not,  how- 
ever, be  complete.  A  list  of  the  most  expensive  items 
of  household  furnishing  and  equipment,  with  a  lump 
sum  to  represent  the  small  items  of  each  type,  is  gen- 
erally sufficient.  If  the  Clothing  inventory  suggested  in 
Chapter  IV  has  been  made  once,  it  gives  a  good  basis 
for  judgment  on  Clothing.  Any  valuable  articles  of 
jewelry  or  such  expensive  items  as  furs  should  be  listed 
separately. 

Such  a  list  is  most  conveniently  kept  on  loose  leaves 
fastened  into  a  cover,  under  such  general  heads  as : 

China,  Glass,  Silver 
Clothing 
Floor  Coverings 
Furniture 
Kitchen  equipment 
Household  linen 
Pictures  and  Ornaments 
Miscellaneous 

For  here,  at  last,  one  may  safely  indulge  in  a  "Mis- 
cellaneous" heading,  to  save  the  wear  and  tear  on  the 
mind  of  trying  to  decide  whether  a  Victrola  is  Fur- 
niture or  whether  an  umbrella  stand  is  an  Ornament. 

The  only  practical  way  to  make  the  inventory  is  for 
two  people  to  work  at  it,  one  calling  off  the  items  and 


ON  INVENTORIES  145 

the  other  writing  them  down  on  large  sheets  in  pencil, 
to  be  copied  later  into  the  book.  The  division  under 
Floor  coverings,  Furniture,  Pictures  and  Ornaments, 
will  naturally  be  by  rooms,  but  the  description  should 
be  definite  enough  so  that  if  the  piece  of  furniture  is 
moved  it  will  still  be  identified.  "Six  dining-room 
chairs"  is  accurate  enough,  but  under  Sitting-room  to 
write  "two  side-chairs"  is  not.  It  should  be  "two  mahog- 
any side-chairs,  cane  seat"  or  "two  oak  side-chairs,  blue 
covering."  As  the  inventory  is  taken,  it  is  well  to 
write  down  the  cost  when  that  comes  to  mind,  and  the 
date  or  approximate  date  of  the  entrance  of  that  item 
into  the  family  life.  All  this  information  is  interest- 
ing and  sometimes  it  proves  valuable. 

When  the  inventory  is  complete  for  the  important 
items  of  each  room,  the  general  value  of  minor  items 
should  be  noted,  under  the  proper  heading.  "Miscel- 
laneous" must  of  course  always  be  itemized. 

The  next  step  is  to  fill  in  on  the  rough  sheets  the 
column  of  original  cost  of  each  article.  This  must  often 
be  a  matter  of  judgment,  sometimes  one  of  guess,  but 
a  value  must  be  set  on  each  piece.  It  is  of  course  pos- 
sible to  set  down  the  present  value  rather  than  the 
original  cost,  but  this  is  more  difficult  and  time-con- 
suming. Shall  the  value  in  that  case  be  the  original 
cost  plus  a  general  depreciation  charge,  which  in  theory 
at  least  reduces  the  value  to  zero  when  the  article  has 


146         GETTING  YOUK  MONEY'S  WORTH 

degenerated  to  the  discarding  point,  or  shall  it  be  the 
sale  value  %  In  the  latter  case  the  basis  is  difficult  to 
choose,  since  at  a  forced  sale,  say  to  the  secondhand  man, 
the  sale  value  is  much  less  than  that  of  a  sale  made  under 
no  compulsion  to  some  housekeeper  who  wants  or  needs 
the  article.  It  seems  a  useless  waste  of  time  to  exer- 
cise individual  judgment  on  such  problems.  Calculat- 
ing the  value  of  each  piece  as  original  cost  minus  de- 
preciation can  be  done  with  a  greater  degree  of  ac- 
curacy, but  is  time  consuming.  The  total  of  original 
costs  can  be  turned  into  an  estimate  of  present  value  by 
deducting  from  it  a  general  depreciation  charge  of  say 
25%,  where  there  is  considerable  furniture  whose  value 
increases  rather  than  decreases  with  age,  or  50%  where 
none  of  the  furniture  is  of  this  type.  Such  general 
judgments  are  just  as  likely  to  approach  that  of  the 
expert  as  are  those  more  carefully  calculated. 

In  inventorying  books  it  is  not  necessary  to  do  so 
individually.  They  can  be  grouped  as  "76  novels,  %S 
volumes  of  poetry,  22  volumes  of  biography"  and  the 
like,  with  an  average  value  assigned,  and  only  books 
of  high  cost  of  value  listed  separately. 

The  store-room  and  the  attic  are  usually  "lumped" 
in  such  an  inventory,  but  the  occasion  of  taking  it  might 
well  be  the  one  to  look  through  the  heterogeneous  collec- 
tions of  such  places  and  to  discard  some  of  the  useless 
or  worthless   things.      Sometimes   there   are  things  of 


ON  INVENTOKIES  147 

value  that  should  be  listed.  Trunks,  for  example,  may 
make  a  goodly  sum  total. 

In  some  states  the  insurer,  to  receive  full  value  in 
case  of  loss,  is  required  to  take  out  insurance  of  at 
least  80%  of  the  value  of  the  things  insured.  The  fire 
insurance  agent  explains  all  such  details,  but  many 
insurers  listen  so  carelessly  that  they  are  surprised  dis- 
agreeably when  the  occasion  comes  to  collect  after  dam- 
age by  fire. 

The  inventory  once  made  needs  a  yearly  revision. 
This  can  usually  be  made  well  enough  by  one  person, 
who  takes  the  inventory  book  about  and  annotates  any 
changes  in  pencil,  noting  additions  on  a  separate  sheet. 
If  these  changes  are  made  in  green  ink  for  one  year, 
red  ink  for  another,  starred  for  another,  the  sheets  need 
be  rewritten  only  at  long  intervals.  To  keep  such  an 
inventory  in  duplicate  uses  more  time,  but  of  course  one 
copy  must  be  left  in  a  secure  place — preferably  a  safe 
or  a  safety  deposit  box — outside  the  house.  If  the 
house  should  burn  or  be  damaged  by  fire  and  the  list 
destroyed,  the  purpose  of  the  list  is  defeated. 


XII 
THE  INDIVIDUAL  BUDGET 

The  principles  of  budget-making  do  not  change, 
whether  the  budget  is  for  a  family  or  an  individual,  yet 
the  balance  of  items  is  frequently  quite  different,  and 
the  individual  deserves  a  few  words.  The  young  man 
or  the  young  woman  who  for  the  moment  is  free  of 
financial  responsibility  for  any  other  person  has  never- 
theless the  probable  prospect  of  family  responsibility  in 
the  future,  and  needs  preparation  for  this  on  the  money 
side  as  well  as  in  other  ways.  It  is  easy  and  tempting 
to  spend  all  the  money  available  on  having  a  "grand 
good  time"  while  one  is  young  and  has  the  physical 
vigor  and  mental  zest  to  enable  one  to  enjoy  it  to  the 
full.  Certainly  young  manhood,  young  womanhood,  is 
the  time  to  enjoy  certain  kinds  of  pleasure,  to  be  care- 
free and  full  of  the  joy  of  living. 

But  to  think  about  it  a  bit  and  decide  deliberately 
how  much  one  is  willing  to  pay  for  all  this  need  cause 
no  clouding  over  of  the  spirit  of  joy.  To  exercise  judg- 
ment as  to  what  one  really  wants  of  life  as  a  whole  is 
not  a  saddening  exercise.     The  pleasure  of  the  moment 

tastes  sweet,  but  there  is  very  enjoyable  savor  in  the 

148 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  BUDGET  149 

pleasure  of  planning  and  directing  one's  own  choices. 

If  the  young  man  or  young  woman  grows  to  middle 
age  without  assuming  family  responsibilities,  the  need 
to  provide  for  the  later  period  of  life  looms  large.  The 
self-supporting  must  look  out  for  their  own  future. 
They  have  an  obligation  to  themselves  in  their  years  of 
lessened  or  vanished  earning  power,  and  the  conscious- 
ness of  this  grows  with  the  passing  years.  The  earlier 
some  provision  is  made  for  this,  the  less  has  to  be  set 
aside  each  year,  but  those  who  have  postponed  such 
provision  until  middle  life  should  not  be  discouraged 
from  the  effort  to  repair  the  negligence  now.  In  Chap- 
ter XV  there  is  a  discussion  of  the  types  of  saving  best 
for  different  types  of  future  need. 

One  may,  of  course,  be  free  of  full  family  obligation 
and  still  have  responsibilities — to  parents  who  need 
financial  aid,  to  the  education  of  younger  brother  or 
sister,  to  nieces  and  nephews,  to  decrepit  or  helpless 
relatives  in  any  degree.  Usually  these  obligations  can 
be  met  by  definite  money  payments,  made  with  regu- 
larity in  the  interests  of  both  receiver  and  giver.  This 
is  the  easiest  way  to  meet  such  obligations,  hard  as  it 
may  sometimes  be  to  see  the  money  go  month  after 
month,  year  after  year,  leaving  the  earner  with  many 
desires  ungratified.  Where  the  obligation  includes  liv- 
ing with  the  person  or  persons  involved,  the  problem 
becomes  that  of  a  family,  although  not  necessarily  one 


150         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

that  has  all  the  needs  described  for  the  average  or  nor- 
mal family  group. 

Those  individuals  who  have  none  of  these  family  or 
friendly  obligations  lose  much  in  losing  their  feeling 
of  being  an  essential  part  of  a  cooperative  group.  Some- 
times they  make  up  for  this  in  part  by  assuming  a  more 
general  obligation  in  some  form  of  community  work, 
such  as  an  orphanage,  a  hospital,  a  neighborhood  house 
or  some  form  of  church  work.  The  middle  aged  or 
elderly  man  or  woman  who  lives  and  works  and  spends 
for  self  alone  is  hardly  a  happy  person. 

Except  for  the  few  individuals  who  maintain  homes, 
in  the  individual  budget  Rent  and  Food  do  not  usually 
bulk  so  large  as  they  do  in  the  family  budget.  Cloth- 
ing, on  the  other  hand,  usually  calls  for  a  larger  pro- 
portion, since  the  household  cleaning,  repair  or  mak- 
ing of  clothing  is  not  often  possible.  Recreation  and 
Entertainment  ordinarily  take  more,  since  less  costly 
pleasures  of  amusement  and  hospitality  in  the  home 
must  be  replaced  by  more  paid  amusements  and  enter- 
tainments at  costlier  meals.  Even  the  pleasure  of 
reading  increases  in  cost,  since  the  book  or  magazine 
is  bought  for  one,  and  the  cost  cannot  be  divided  into 
the  family  cost.  Fuel  and  Light  vanish  as  items  if  one 
does  not  maintain  home  or  apartment,  and  Service  les- 
sens or  disappears.  But  these  are  all  minor  matters, 
easy  for  the  individual  to  decide. 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  BUDGET  151 

Accounts  are  simpler  to  keep,  since  both  headings  and 
items  are  surer.  They  are  equally  necessary,  since  the 
detached  individual  is  tempted  even  more  than  the 
member  of  a  family  to  the  scattering  about  of  many 
dollars  in  nickels,  dimes  and  quarters. 

The  man  or  woman  who  lives  apart  from  a  family 
that  on  some  basis  is  a  real  family  to  him  or  her  is 
often  socially-minded  and  -does  not  grow  selfish  even 
when  there  is  no  concrete  call  to  consider  others.  But, 
the  conditions  are  not  favorable,  and  to  avoid  deteriora- 
tion one  must  seek  to  find  antidotes  to  the  subtle  poisons 
of  considering  one's  own  comfort  and  ease  alone,  whether 
the  comfort  be  physical,  the  ease  mental,  or  either  be 
spiritual.  The  lone  man  or  woman  is  handicapped  in 
the  race  to  the  finest  development  of  personality.  The 
budget  is  a  help  in  recognizing  and  overcoming  this 
handicap. 


XIII 

TRAINING  THE  CHILDREN 

Thus  far  in  this  book  the  question  of  the  children's 
share  in  the  making  and  carrying  out  of  the  budget 
has  been  dealt  with,  in  one  aspect  or  another,  more 
than  once.  But  it  is  not  enough  training  for  these  ap- 
prentices to  teach  them  judgment  through  a  part 
in  making  the  family  choices,  to  train  them  in  the  earn- 
ing of  a  labor  income,  or  to  give  them  the  chance  to 
pay  with  some  of  their  time  and  energy  for  something 
they  want.  All  these  things  are  fundamental,  but  they 
need  to  be  supplemented  by  the  definite  training  of 
making  a  budget  and  keeping  accounts  within  the  child's 
scope  and  as  a  responsibility.  This  is  possible  only 
if  the  child  has  a  fixed  money  income,  paid  in  sums 
and  at  intervals  known  in  advance.  The  "allowance," 
this  is  called.  If  the  word  means  the  amount  of  the 
family  income  that  is  allowed  the  individual  for  cer- 
tain purposes  of  his  own,  and  over  which  he  has  full 
right,  the  term  is  a  good  one.  If  there  is  a  con- 
notation of  favor  in  the  term,  so  that  the  child  or  the 
family  feels  that  his  "allowance"  is  an  indulgence, 
the  term  is  unfortunate. 

152 


TRAINING  THE  CHILDREN  153 

It  is  not  enough  to  say  that  for  the  training  of  the 
child  in  spending,  as  an  educational  measure,  he  should 
have  a  definite  sum  for  whose  spending  he  alone  is  re- 
sponsible. As  a  member  of  the  family  he  has  a  right  to 
that  responsibility,  and  he  does  not  share  the  family  life 
fully  unless  he  has  it.  And  this  sum  is  not  payment  for 
anything  he  does  in  the  household  routine.  To  pay 
Jack  10  cents  a  week  for  keeping  the  walks  clean,  or 
Mary  10  cents  a  week  for  clearing  the  table,  introduces 
as  false  an  idea  into  the  family  life  as  when  Mother  is 
paid  for  her  services.  In  a  cooperative  group  each  re- 
ceives, not  what  he  earns,  but  the  share  to  which  he  is 
entitled  by  his  needs.  Children  are  not  "given"  their 
main  expenses  by  Father  and  Mother  only  to  "earn" 
an  allowance.  The  family  income,  in  time  and  in 
labor,  belongs  to  the  family  as  a  whole  and  is  divided  by 
them  to  the  best  advantage  of  the  group  as  a  whole  and 
of  each  individual  in  it.  It  cannot  be  said  too  strongly 
that  teaching  children  the  value  or  the  method  of  ob- 
taining money  by  paying  them  for  any  part  of  their 
share  in  the  family  life  is  bad  education  and  bad 
ethics. 

Granted,  however,  that  the  allowance  is  made  as 
part  of  each  child's  share  in  the  living,  when  and  under 
what  conditions  should  it  be  given?  To  answer  the 
first  half  of  the  question,  each  child  should  certainly 
have  an  allowance  as  soon  as  he  can  do  the  simple  figur- 


154         GETTING  YOTTK  MONEY'S  WOETH 

ing  necessary  to  make  a  plan  and  keep  accounts.  With 
many  children  it  is  advisable  to  begin  before  this,  but 
only  when  the  child  understands  that  the  money  is 
not  a  casual  indulgence,  but  a  definite  income.  The  age 
at  which  the  child  should  have  an  allowance  must  de- 
pend on  the  individual  child,  and  that  child's  stage 
of  development  must  be  considered  at  every  point. 
There  is  danger  that  enthusiasm  for  training  the  child 
by  giving  him  responsibility  may  lead  to  asking  him 
to  take  too  much,  and  to  putting  an  unfair  strain  on  his 
undeveloped  judgment.  The  problem  is  that  of  right 
adjustment  to  his  powers,  as  is  every  educational  prob- 
lem in  some  degree. 

The  allowance  should  be  given  the  child  weekly,  and 
on  a  regular  day.  Sunday  afternoon  or  evening  is 
in  most  families  a  good  time  for  the  distribution,  and 
£or  the  questions  that  may  come  up.  And  the  child 
old  enough  to  keep  accounts  should  be  required  to  do 
so,  and  to  balance  them.  From  time  to  time  Mother 
or  Father  should  call  for  the  account,  and  they  should 
expect  it  to  be  ready  at  any  time.  Accounts  hastily 
written  up  for  inspection  are  a  temptation  to  careless- 
ness and  even  deceit.  The  inspection  should  be  for 
the  method  of  keeping  accounts,  not  for  the  way  the 
money  was  used.  If  money  is  used  unwisely,  as  the 
parents  see  it,  any  exhortation  regarding  this  must  de- 
pend on  the  character  and  general  training  of  the  child. 


TRAINING  THE  CHILDREN  155 

Such  exhortation  should  be  avoided  unless  it  is  very 
important.  It  is  of  little  disciplinary  value  to  the 
child  to  give  him  responsibility  and  then  to  interfere  in 
his  exercise  of  it.  And  parents  will  do  well  to  remember 
how  easy  it  is  to  criticize  the  judgment  of  others  in 
the  use  of  money,  how  hard  it  is  to  be  confident  of 
one's  own.  But  the  inspection  of  method  cannot  be 
omitted,  as  unless  with  the  exceptional  child  slipshod 
ways  will  be  the  result  if  the  child  is  left  to  his  own 
devices. 

The  third  point  in  importance,  after  those  of  the 
regular  fixed  income  and  the  inspected  account,  is  defi- 
niteness  regarding  what  the  money  is  to  cover.  It 
should  never  be  for  amusement — candy,  movies,  what- 
not— alone.  Eor  those  who  have  church  connections,  the 
Sunday  School  penny  is  a  frequent  part  of  the  plan, 
and  a  good  one,  but  should  be  led  up  to  until  it  is  the 
choice  of  the  child,  not  the  order  of  the  elder.  "You 
are  old  enough  now  to  have  a  little  income  of  your 
own,  so  every  week  you  are  to  have  your  share.  Ten 
cents  a  week,  that  is  going  to  be  more  than  $5  in  the 
year.  Every  Sunday  afternoon  I  am  going  to  give  you 
the  ten  cents,  and  I  will  show  you  about  how  to  keep 
track  of  it.  But  first  you  want  to  plan  a  little,  as  we 
all  do  about  our  money,  don't  you  ?  Do  you  want  to 
spend  all  the  ten  cents  on  yourself?"  and  so  on.  That 
sounds  a  little  like  Rollo,  but  a  real  give-and-take  con- 


156         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

versation  of  this  kind  is  hard  to  reproduce,  since  mothers 
and  fathers  and  children  are  all  different.  But  surely 
the  child  should  be  expected  to  make  a  plan  and  should 
be  led,  not  forced,  to  plan  to  give  some  for  the  general 
good  and  some  in  presents  to  those  he  loves.  The  im- 
pulse toward  both  is  so  strong  in  most  children  that 
the  process  is  a  simple  one.  The  occasional  child  who 
does  not  want  to  give  anything  to  anybody  needs  train- 
ing as  early  as  possible.  It  might  even  be  advisable  in 
an  extreme  case  to  make  his  allowance  smaller  than 
that  of  his  brother  or  sister,  on  the  ground  that  his 
needs  are  fewer,  since  he  has  not  the  desire  to  share 
with  others  that  they  must  meet. 

As  rapidly  as  possible  the  income  should  be  increased 
and  the  responsibilities  along  with  it.  The  increase 
should  not  be  on  the  ground  of  age,  except  as  an  added 
year  makes  the  child  more  able  to  exercise  judgment 
and  meet  responsibility.  It  should  be  quite  clear  to 
Dorothy,  who  has  15  cents  a  week  at  ten,  that  the  reason 
Betty  has  25  cents  at  twelve  is  not  because  she  is  two 
years  older,  but  because  she  has  good  enough  judgment 
to  buy  all  her  own  hair  ribbons,  which  come  out  of 
the  seemingly  princely  weekly  allowance. 

The  allowance  and  the  responsibility  should  be  in- 
creased as  fast  as  is  advisable  with  each  child  until  in 
late  adolescence  the  money  is  enough  to  cover  all  the 
clothing  expenditure  and  minor  personal  expenses  like 


TRAINING  THE  CHILDREN  157 

stamps  and  stationery,  as  well  as  gifts.  One  girl  of 
twelve  may  be  able  to  handle  this  whole  allowance, 
while  another  of  seventeen  may  be  trusted  with  it  only 
under  rather  strict  conditions.  Of  course  Mother  or 
Father  makes  it  a  condition  that  the  clothing  shall 
protect  health,  and  equally  of  course  shops  with  the 
young  buyer  to  give  him  or  her  the  benefit  of  greater 
experience  in  judging  materials  and  values.  Equally  of 
course  Father  and  Mother  are  constantly  tempted  to 
influence  decision  when  the  young  shopper  makes  mis- 
takes in  judgment,  and  often  they  may  be  justified,  but 
they  should  count  ten  before  they  speak  and  be  sure 
that  they  are  not  interfering  with  the  right  course  of 
the  child's  education.  No  one  can  learn  good  judgment 
without  the  experience  of  making  mistakes  and  suf- 
fering by  them.  This  generation  has  forgotten  dear 
old  Miss  Eclgeworth  and  her  Moral  Tales,  but  they 
were  wonderfully  good  tales  at  that.  Rosamond  and 
the  Purple  Jar  is  a  story  of  wise  parents,  who  let  their 
little  girl  waste  her  money  by  buying  the  glass  jar 
of  dull  looking  paste  that  had  shone  so  alluringly  pur- 
ple in  the  chemist's  window,  with  the  strong  light  be- 
hind it.  They  explained  to  her  that  she  might  have  it 
instead  of  the  new  boots  she  needed,  but  that  she  could 
not  have  both,  and  tried  to  make  her  see  the  conse- 
quences of  her  decision.  But  when  she  made  the  foolish 
one  they  did  not  save  her  from  the  humiliation  of  wear- 


BOSTON  COLLEGE  LIBRARY 
L    CHESTNUT  HILL,  MA6S. 


158  GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

ing  boots  with  holes,  or  allow  her  to  injure  her  health 
by  going  out  in  bad  weather  with  such  poor  protection. 

Their  wisdom  must  be  the  rule  for  the  parents  of  to- 
day if  the  children  are  not  to.be  cheated.  Many  a  so- 
called  indulgent  father  or  mother  grants  an  "allowance" 
to  son  or  daughter  either  without  making  clear  what 
must  be  bought  out  of  it  or  with  the  secret  intention  of 
buying  themselves  for  the  child  what  the  allowance 
does  not  cover.  Where  then  is  the  education  as  to  the 
limit  of  expenditure?  If  teasing  Father  or  weeping 
for  Mother  or  pouting  and  refusing  an  invitation  can 
get  a  new  dress  when  daughter  has  spent  all  her  al- 
lowance, why  should  she  plan  carefully  how  she  is  to 
spend  that  all  too  limited  sum?  If  complaining  be- 
cause all  the  other  boys  have  new  fishing  rods,  or  being 
glum  and  disagreeable  with  Mother  because  he  hasn't 
had  a  new  necktie  this  season,  or  confiding  to  Father 
that  women  don't  understand  a  boy,  or  know  what  he 
wants — if  all  these  bring  the  needed  rod  or  necktie  or 
additional  money  for  fun,  why  need  son  think  twice 
before  he  spends  ?  All  this  does  not  mean  that  Christ- 
mas or  birthday  may  not  bring  a  gift  of  some  needed 
luxury,  but  it  is  a  gift  instead  of  some  other  gift,  not 
a  surreptitious  addition  to  the  allowance,  and  even 
such  gifts  should  be  made  with  care. 

Sometimes  there  is  a  devoted  uncle  or  aunt  or  grand- 
mother or  friend  who  is  entirely  unsympathetic  with 


TRAINING  THE  CHILDREN  159 

this  training,  who  holds  that  young  people  should  be 
free  of  responsibility  and  should  have  what  they  want 
so  far  as  they  can  secure  it,  and  who  adds  to  the 
allowance  by  gifts  of  money  or  clothing.  There  is  no 
relief  in  such  a  case  but  to  talk  the  whole  matter  over 
with  the  recipient  and  decide  together  on  the  right 
way  to  deal  with  this  addition. 

When  children  are  sent  away  to  school,  the  allow- 
ance is  of  as  great  if  not  greater  importance  than  it 
is  at  home.  It  is  literally  demoralizing  for  the  school- 
boy or  schoolgirl  thrown  with  many  others  who  are 
spending  money  in  many  ways  to  be  uncertain  as  to  the 
amount  he  or  she  can  have  to  spend  during  the  year. 
To  ask  for  money,  to  coax,  to  wheedle — it  is  all  unfair. 
Many  schools  limit  the  spending  money  of  all  students 
to  one  sum,  but  it  is  hardly  possible  to  do  that  for  an 
allowance  that  covers  clothing.  And  many  a  head  of 
such  a  school  has  been  rebuffed  decidedly  when  he  or 
she  has  asked  that  a  definite  allowance  be  made  to 
cover  all  expenses.  "My  son — my  daughter — is  too 
young  to  handle  so  large  a  sum  of  money.  I  am  aston- 
ished that  you  suggest  it."  Yet  not  too  young  to  spend 
it,  or  to  try  to  get  more  from  the  bottomless  well — in 
their  conception  of  it  if  not  in  cash — of  Father's  wealth. 

There  is  a  possible  compromise  on  the  clothing  side 
where  the  parents  are  unwilling  to  give  over  the  money 
to  the  child.     The  latter  can  be  told  the  amount  that  is 


160         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

available  for  the  year,  keep  strict  account  of  all  that  is 
spent  and  make  the  choices,  while  Father  or  Mother 
pays  the  bills.  Or  if  not  all  the  choices,  some  of  them. 
The  parent  reluctant  to  begin  this  is  often  converted 
to  greater  generosity  in  allowing  choice  by  the  serious- 
ness with  which  the  child  takes  the  matter  and  the 
good  judgment  he  or  she  shows  in  fitting  the  thing 
bought  to  needs  or  desires. 

It  is  not  at  all  unreasonable  to  require  approval  of 
the  child's  budget  by  father  or  mother  or  both  before 
the  budget  can  be  put  into  effect,  and  to  require  ex- 
planation when  the  yearly  expenditure  shows  a  serious 
deviation  from  the  budget.  This  can  be  done  without 
any  real  interference,  and  is  often  a  great  help  to  the 
novice,  since  experience  has  taught  the  parents  what  he 
or  she  has  yet  to  learn. 

Every  child  who  has  a  large  enough  allowance  to  war- 
rant it,  as  will  be  the  case  when  the  clothing  account 
is  of  several  hundred  dollars,  should  have  a  checking 
bank  account,  into  which  the  allowance  is  paid  and  on 
which  he  or  she  draws.  It  is  only  just  that  if  the  bank 
requires  a  minimum  deposit  of  $100  or  $200,  this 
amount  should  be  supplied  from  the  family  income  (and 
counted  each  year  in  the  cash  on  hand)  ;  otherwise  the 
child  could  not  use  the  allowance  to  the  full,  which 
should  be  possible. 

As  the  children  grow  to  young  manhood  and  woman- 


TRAINING  THE  CHILDREN  161 

hood  and  begin  full-time  work  as  wage  or  salary  earn- 
ers while  still  living  in  their  own  home,  the  allowance 
lessens  or  ceases.  The  amount  earned  at  first  is  usually 
not  enough  to  enable  the  young  worker  to  pay  into  the 
common  treasury  what  from  a  commercial  point  of 
view  is  his  share  of  the  cost  of  the  household.  But 
he  or  she  contributes  according  to  his  ability.  To  con- 
tinue the  allowance  and  accept  part  of  the  earned  in- 
come of  the  young  worker  is  perhaps  absurd  from  a 
business  point  of  view,  but  from  that  of  the  family 
as  a  cooperative  group  is  a  sensible  one.  When  the 
young  man  or  woman  is  at  last  in  a  financial  position 
to  bear  a  full  share  in  the  family  expenditure,  the 
thrill  of  satisfaction  is  not  confined  to  any  one  member 
of  the  family. 

Back  of  any  such  method  of  dealing  with  the  prob- 
lem as  is  suggested  here  lies  the  expectation  that  the 
child  when  grown  to  manhood  or  womanhood  will  be 
self-supporting.  In  many  families  the  plan  of  father 
and  mother  is  to  "leave  the  children  well  provided 
for,"  which  means  to  leave  them  money  enough  to  pro- 
duce an  income  on  which  they  can  live.  Most  parents, 
however,  as  a  matter  of  necessity  bring  their  children 
up  to  earn  their  own  living.  And  thousands  who  might 
make  money  provision  for  their  children  for  the  sake 
of  the  children  themselves  and  for  the  sake  of  society 
at  large  bring  them  up  to  become  self-supporting  just  as 


162         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

definitely  as  if  a  small  family  income  made  this  neces- 
sary. This  has  always  been  true  in  America  as  regards 
the  boys,  and  is  increasingly  becoming  true  for  the 
girls  also.  There  are  still,  however,  thousands  of  girls 
who  are  handicapped  by  the  social  attitude  that  makes 
the  parents — and  often  the  girls  themselves — fear  that 
they  will  destroy  something  fine  in  the  girl  if  they 
make  her  useful  enough  in  any  occupation  (other,  than 
homemaking)  so  that  she  can  be  worth  a  money  wage 
large  enough  to  support  her.  Training  for  self-support 
is  unquestionably  a  heritage  of  greater  value  than  any 
amount  of  money.  It  not  only  gives  something  that 
cannot  be  taken  away  or  lost  without  the  fault  of  the 
owner,  as  money  may  be,  but  in  giving  this  makes  the 
member  of  the  younger  generation  a  full  sharer  in  his 
social  heritage. 


XIV 
USING  BANKS 

There  are  three  kinds  of  banking  institutions  com- 
monly used.  In  one  kind  all  the  money  deposited  is 
available  at  any  moment  through  a  check  or  checks 
drawn  against  the  account.  In  large  cities  such  banks 
now  very  generally  require  a  standing  deposit  of  $100 
or  $200,  and  if  this  is  drawn  on  they  charge  for  carry- 
ing the  account,  usually  $1  a  month.  The  banks  in 
smaller  places  rarely  make  this  requirement.  But  in 
either,  any  or  all  of  the  money  may  be  drawn  at  any 
time  without  warning. 

The  second  type  is  the  Trust  Company,  which  receives 
money  and  holds  it  at  the  call  of  the  depositor  (on  check) 
like  the  first  type  of  bank,  but  pays  a  low  monthly  in- 
terest (not  often  more  than  2%)  on  the  deposit  if  this 
reaches  some  minimum,  which  may  be  as  low  as  $100. 
In  other  words,  if  a  man's  balance  in  that  bank  has 
not  fallen  below  $400  during  a  given  month,  at  the  end 
of  that  month  (at  2%)  .67  interest  will  be  added  to 
the  account.  The  money  advantage  of  such  an  arrange- 
ment in  many  cases  is  more  evident  when  one  remem- 
bers that  the  $200  minimum  of  the  large  bank  means  a 

163 


164         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

loss  of  $8  a  year  interest  that  a  savings  bank  deposit  of 
that  amount  would  bring. 

The  savings  bank  is  the  third  type,  for  deposits  that 
are  not  subject  to  withdrawal  by  check.  The  depositor 
has  no  checks  and  can  get  money  from  his  account  only 
by  presenting  at  the  bank  the  slip  receipt  that  it  re- 
quires. Savings  banks  may  by  law  require  thirty  days 
notice  of  withdrawal  of  deposits,  but  this  right  is  rarely 
exercised.  The  bank  pays  interest — from  3%  to  4%, 
according  to  the  bank — on  all  money  that  has  been  in 
the  bank  six  months  at  the  time  of  the  payment  of  semi- 
annual interest. 

Eor  those  whose  income  is  very  irregular,  the  sav- 
ings bank  is  almost  indispensable.  Workers  in  seasonal 
trades,  where  there  is  employment  for  some  weeks,  no 
work  for  a  similar  period,  and  a  repetition  of  this  pro- 
cess through  the  year,  can  deposit  regularly  weekly 
when  the  pay  is  coming  in,  and  withdraw  a  regular 
amount  weekly  when  there  is  no  pay.  In  this  way  the 
small  account — or  any  part  of  it  carried  for  the  half- 
year  period  of  the  bank — is  drawing  interest,  and  when 
the  need  is  desperate,  the  account  can  be  entirely  closed, 
and  all  the  money  used,  without  any  loss  to  the  depositor. 
This  method  of  providing  for  periods  of  unemployment 
is  unquestionably  the  safest,  and  careful  calculation  will 
add  to  the  account  regularly  during  periods  of  earn- 
ing enough  to  keep  the  worker  or  the  family  in  the 


USING  BANKS  165 

non-earning  periods.  If  such  provision  is  not  made, 
it  is  hard  to  resist  the  temptation  to  have  a  little  fling 
while  the  money  is  coming  in  and  be  left  with  too  little 
to  pay  for  food  and  rent  when  the  wages  stop.  Many 
families  depending  on  commissions  irregularly  paid, 
or  even  on  stories  or  pictures  sold  at  intervals,  would 
do  well  to  adopt  this  method. 

There  are  great  advantages  in  having  a  checking  ac- 
count, on  any  income  large  enough  to  allow  it.  This 
should  be  carried  in  addition  to  the  savings  bank  ac- 
count when  the  income,  even  if  irregular,  is  large 
enough  to  warrant  it.  How  large  that  is  must  depend 
on  whether  the  bank  requires  the  $200  or  $300  mini- 
mum, whether  marketing  of  all  kinds  is  done  under 
conditions  that  make  checks  useful  or  desirable,  and 
other  personal  conditions.  The  check  returned  to  the 
bank  and  then  to  the  depositor  is  the  best  of  receipts, 
and  it  is  the  growing  habit  of  large  retail  business 
houses  to  return  no  other  receipt  unless  especially  re- 
quested. This  is  a  considerable  saving  in  postage,  in 
envelopes  and  in  labor  for  such  a  concern  as  a  large 
department  store,  and  such  a  saving  means  a  lessened 
overhead  cost,  find  is  eventually  an  advantage  to  the 
customer.  Checks  are  easy  to  handle  and  to  file,  being 
of  uniform  size,  and  occupy  little  room.  Wherever 
money  must  be  sent  by  mail,  they  provide  a  safe  and 
easy  way  of  sending.     The  security  and  the  economy 


166         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

of  time  and  labor  that  a  checking  account  gives  are 
usually  well  worth  the  cost  of  carrying  one.  But 
although  this  cost  does  not  appear  on  the  expense  card 
it  should  not  he  forgotten.  If  the  bank  requires  a  mini- 
mum of  $200  the  cost  of  carrying  the  account  may  be 
calculated  as  4%  on  $200,  (which  one  could  get  from 
a  savings  bank  and  still  have  the  cash  easily  available) ; 
that  is,  $8  a  year.  On  the  other  hand,  there  is  a  credit 
advantage  in  carrying  the  checking  account,  as  payment 
by  check  is  preferred  by  any  firm  carrying  weekly  or 
monthly  charge  accounts,  and  the  possession  of  a  bank 
account  gives  a  certain  financial  standing  to  the  indi- 
vidual. Whether  the  cost  is  worth  the  advantages  in  a 
given  case  is  a  question  to  be  decided  by  the  family  or 
individual.  Yet  there  are  few  who  having  once  estab- 
lished a  checking  bank  account  are  willing  to  give  it  up. 
Savings  Bank  Account.  The  depositor  receives  a 
bank-book,  in  which  all  deposits  and  withdrawals  are 
entered.  To  deposit  money  he  fills  out  a  regular  slip 
provided  by  the  bank  and  presents  this  at  the  proper  win- 
dow of  the  bank,  with  his  book.  He  need  not  go  in  per- 
son, but  may  send  some  one  else  with  book  and  slip  or 
send  both  by  registered  mail.  The  latter  is  often  neces- 
sary when  the  bank  is  in  another  town.  The  bank  offi- 
cial (teller)  retains  the  slip  and  writes  the  deposit  in 
the  bank-book,  returning  this  to  the  customer.  To  with- 
draw money  a  slip  is  also  provided,  and  must  be  pre- 


USING  BANKS  167 

sented  with  the  book  in  the  same  way.  Money  can  be 
withdrawn  by  mail,  as  it  is  deposited,  the  bank  in  that 
case  sending  the  amount  in  a  check  or  draft. 

Interest  on  savings  bank  accounts  is  credited  semi- 
yearly,  and  entered  in  the  depositor's  bank-book  when  he 
leaves  it  for  the  purpose.  January  1  and  July  1  are  the 
usual  dates  on  which  to  credit  this.  This  should  be 
remembered  in  making  out  income  tax  returns,  as  the 
interest  credited  must  be  reported  as  income,  and  it 
is  credited  to  the  depositor  on  the  bank  ledgers  as  soon 
as  it  is  payable. 

Checking  Accounts.  To  open  an  account  the  pros- 
pective depositor  calls  at  the  bank,  accompanied  by 
some  one  known  at  the  bank  or  by  a  letter  of  introduc- 
tion from  another  bank.  If  the  latter  is  made  as  "in- 
troducing John  M.  Jones,  whose  signature  is  written 
below"  and  Mr.  Jones  writes  his  name  at  the  bottom  of 
the  sheet  before  presenting  the  letter,  the  introduction 
is  satisfactory  identification.  But  the  bank  must  be 
sure  that  the  individual  is  what  he  represents  himself 
to  be,  and  to  be  offended  by  a  request  for  proof  of 
identity  as  if  the  matter  were  a  personal  one,  is  a  mark 
of  inexperience  and  misapplied  sensitiveness. 

The  depositor  should  come  with  money  enough  in 
cash  or  checks  to  open  the  account.  He  is  asked  to  write 
his  signature  once  or  more  on  the  bank's  records,  with 
which  they  can  at  any  time  compare  the  signature  on  a 


168         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

check,  and  the  form  of  signature  chosen — name  in  full 
or  middle  name  or  names  by  initial  only — should  be 
used  on  all  checks.  He  is  then  supplied  with  deposit 
slips  and  a  check-book  and  in, most  cases  with  a  bank- 
book, in  which  is  written  the  date  and  amount  of  his 
deposit,  and  is  given  any  information  necessary  as  to  the 
rules  and  procedure  of  this  particular  bank. 

The  bank  has  several  forms  of  check-book,  with  one, 
three,  or  more  checks  to  the  page,  and  often  the  smallest 
are  furnished  in  a  folding  case,  to  make  them  more 
compact  for  pocket  or  hand-bag.  Usually  a  woman  and 
frequently  a  man  thinks  the  one-check-to-a-page  variety 
the  best  to  choose,  since  it  is  less  bulky,  but  the  three- 
check-to-a-page  is  the  most  practical  for  ordinary  family 
or  individual  use.  The  bookkeeping  side  is  simpler,  as 
the  addition  of  the  amounts  of  three  checks  and  the  de- 
duction of  this  total  from  the  total  deposit  is  a  little 
shorter  and  a  little  less  liable  to  error  than  the  de- 
duction of  each  check  total  separately  and  the  con- 
tinual carrying  forward  of  the  balance.  The  book  is 
also  easier  to  handle  in  checking  up  an  account  or  look- 
ing back  to  verify  a  payment.  Bulk  is  not  of  importance, 
as  one  does  not  ordinarily  carry  a  check-book  about,  but 
keeps  it  on  or  in  one's  home  desk,  where  accounts  are 
also  kept.  If  checks  may  be  needed  away  from  home 
or  in  traveling,  it  is  easy  to  tear  a  few  from  the  book 
(taking  care  that  they  are  numbered)   and  when  each 


USING  BANKS  169 

is  filled  out,  to  make  a  note  of  number,  date,  amount  and 
payee  to  be  transferred  later  to  the  check-book  stub. 
The  check  is  an  order  on  the  bank,  in  this  form  for  con- 
venience, but  any  written  order  to  the  bank  will  be  ac- 
cepted. The  bank  has  on  its  desks  for  customers 
"counter  checks"  for  the  convenience  of  those  who  wish 
to  pay  or  draw  money  and  have  forgotten  their  own 
checks.  The  danger  of  using  these  or  an  order  in  the 
form  of  a  letter  is  that  one  may  forget  to  enter  them. 
Note  must  be  made  at  the  time  and  when  the  check- 
book is  obtainable,  they  must  be  entered  in  the  margin 
in  the  proper  chronological  order  and  numbered — with 
a  supplementary  aa"  (103a)  if  the  numbering  is  already 
on  the  stubs. 

The  checks  are  to  be  consecutively  numbered.  There 
are  usually  fewer  mistakes  if  numbers  are  written  ahead 
in  fifties  or  hundreds  or  through  the  book,  rather  than 
one  by  one  as  the  checks  are  written.  The  stubs  are 
numbered  to  correspond  with  the  checks.  This  number- 
ing is  not  essential  to  the  banking  transaction,  but  is  a 
time-saver  in  checking  the  account,  as  will  be  seen  later. 
It  is  also  more  business-like  and  enables  one  to  refer  to 
a  check  by  number  in  a  convenient  way.  In  order  to 
avoid  long  numbers,  a  new  series  must  be  started  from 
time  to  time.  An  excellent  rule  is  to  start  each  year 
with  fresh  numbering.  Check  24  is  then  24  of  1920,  or 
24  of  1922,  easily  identified  and  looked  up. 


170         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

In  the  column  allowed  for  Deposits  the  sum  on  hand 
should  be  at  the  top  of  the  column,  and  it  is  more  con- 
venient to  enter  deposits  made  while  the  page  is  in  use 
directly  under  the  top  figures.  There  is  a  column  at 
the  left  for  the  date  of  the  deposit. 

In  writing  a  check  accuracy  and  clearness  are  of  first 
importance.  The  handwriting  should  be  the  most  legi- 
ble the  writer  can  attain.  The  date,  amount  in  figures, 
name  of  payee  and  amount  written  out  should  all  be 
so  written  that  there  is  no  mistake.  If  there  is  a  house- 
hold typewriter,  the  monthly  checks  can  be  made  out 
at  one  time  on  this,  leaving  only  the  signature  to  be 
written.  The  name  of  the  payee  should  be  full  enough 
for  certain  identification;  Mary  L.  Anderson  is  better 
than  M.  L.  Anderson  or  Mary  Anderson,  even  though 
the  check  is  collectible  under  any  of  the  three  forms. 
Even  Mrs.  John  Q.  Anderson  is  collectible,  but  it  is  not 
a  business  way  of  making  a  check.  Mrs.,  Miss  or  Mr. 
have  no  proper  place  on  such  a  document.  They  are 
courtesy  titles,  for  social  use.  A  slight  variation  in 
spelling — Andersen  for  Anderson,  Marie  for  Mary — 
may  not  prevent  the  payment,  but  such  variations,  if 
evidence  of  general  slipshod  ways,  may  some  day  lead 
to  serious  consequences. 

The  amount  should  be  so  written  that  the  check  can- 
not be  raised — that  is,  the  amount  made  more  by  the 
addition   of  a  word   and  figures,      To   do  this,   begin 


USING  BANKS  171 

writing  at  the  extreme  left.  This  space  cannot  be  prop- 
erly filled  by  a  line  drawn  by  the  pen.  The  courts  have 
held  that  in  case  such  a  check  is  altered  there  is  "con- 
tributory negligence"  on  the  part  of  the  person  who  so 
wrote  it.  When  the  whole  sum  is  easily  written  in  full, 
that  should  be  done,  but  the  dollars  written  out  and  the 
fraction  at  the  end  are  sufficient  if  connected  by  a  line. 
For  example : 


The  Nassau  National  Bank  of  Brooklyn  ,r"« 

New  York  City &J  jL*0j*iA*W  /      lfl?/      AV»      />  /  5" 

-GLAArOL^SL     ^fl^^Y' DOLLAKS 


Rv 

j   TO  THE 

I     ORDKKOF 


-dorc  - 


r 


-*£**£ 


The  Nassau  National  Bank  of  Brooklyn  »=fr* 

\EwYoRKCrrY $.£Ct#(j4AJ  {  192  Z.   Nn.    2/6 

&■-•"  -  _  .  ^fco    Dollars 


dil4C/.  s<£foig 


If  the  writing  does  not  begin  at  the  extreme  left,  but 
an  inch  in,  the  check  can  easily  be  changed  and  if  the 
figures  are  written  with  the  same  lack  of  care,  the  check 


can  be  changed  to 


172         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 


The  Nassau  National  Bank  of  Brooklyn  »  "« 

New  York  City &J&u<Ju>  I    192  L-    No.  2AS 

-^**^*L  &-<£6jj  Dollars 


AY 

TO  THE 
L     ORDER  OF 


To  be  sure,  there  is  not  much  danger  of  such  rais- 
ing in  the  checks  of  the  ordinary  individual,  since  the 
sums  are  not  large  enough  to  pay  for  the  risk,  the  de- 
posits are  not  large  enough  to  warrant  a  "worth  while" 
raise  and  the  other  difficulties  are  too  great,  but  when 
one  is  conducting  any  kind  of  business  transaction  it 
should  be  done  in  the  business  way,  for  the  establishing 
of  good  habits.  To  write  a  check  badly  does  not  ordi- 
narily mean  that  it  will  not  be  honored  by  the  bank  or 
that  it  will  be  altered  by  a  forger,  as  any  bank  man  will 
tell  you.  The  results  will  be  a  nuisance  to  the  bank, 
and  to  the  writer  another  step  on  the  path  of  careless- 
ness. 

At  the  time  the  check  is  written  the  stub  must  also  be 
filled  out,  with  date,  payee  and  amount,  and  some  brief 
indication  of  the  commodity  bought.  "Groceries," 
"Coal,"  or  for  department  store,  gas,  electric  light  or 
telephone,  "Bill  of  June  1"  or  "Bill  of  May  31."  Where 
accounts  are  kept,  detail  on  check  stubs  is  unnecessary. 


USING  BANKS  173 

When  all  the  checks  on  a  page  are  used,  add  Deposits 
column  and  column  Amount  of  Check,  subtract  the  lat- 
ter from  the  former  and  transfer  to  the  next  page  the 
balance.  It  is  a  convenience  to  use  a  large  clip  at  the 
top  to  hold  together  a  number  of  pages  of  the  check- 
book, the  page  in  use  being  the  last  so  held.  In  this 
way  one  can  open  at  once  to  the  current  page. 

Some  mark  must  be  adopted  to  show  that  the  ex- 
penditure represented  has  been  entered  in  the  accounts 
— a  small  V  in  the  upper  right  hand  corner  of  the 
space  for  entering  check  items  on  the  stubs  is  easily 
seen.  Where  a  check  is  drawn  to  Self  or  Cash,  when  the 
expenditure  will  be  recorded  as  it  occurs,  the  mark 
should  be  made  on  writing  the  check.  In  other  cases  if 
it  is  convenient  to  enter  the  expenditure  at  once  on 
accounts,  well  and  good,  but  there  is  no  need  for  doing 
this  until  the  weekly  entry  of  all  accounts.  Then  ex- 
amine the  check-book  and  record  the  expenditure  repre- 
sented by  all  checks  not  bearing  the  V.  If  the  clip 
is  used,-  it  is  well  not  to  clip  down  any  page  until  the 
account  entries  are  made.  In  this  way  one  does  not 
need  to  look  back  continually  to  see  whether  the  ac- 
count record  is  complete.  When  the  check-book  is  all 
used,  as  a  precaution  run  through  to  see  that  the  little 
V  is  on  every  card.  If  it  is  not,  look  to  see  if  the  sum 
represented  by  the  check  has  been  entered  on  the  ac- 
counts. 


174         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

At  stated  intervals  the  check-book  must  be  checked 
up  with  the  bank  statement.  It  is  increasingly  the 
practice  of  banks  to  send  by  mail  an  account  for  each 
month,  and  this  is  advisable,  as  checking  up  frequently 
is  easier  both  because  the  figuring  is  less  and  because 
errors  are  more  easily  traced.  Banks  are  justly  looked 
on  as  models  of  accuracy,  but  they  are  nevertheless 
staffed  by  fallible  human  beings  and  one  of  these  oc- 
casionally charges  a  check  or  credits  a  deposit  to  the 
wrong  person.  To  one  mistake  made  by  the  bank  there 
are  unknown  thousands  made  by  depositors,  who  are 
not  practised  in  banking.  Either  kind  of  mistake 
should  be  found  and  corrected  as  soon  as  possible.  If 
the  bank  does  not  send  a  monthly  statement,  ask  for 
one  each  month,  or  in  the  occasional  case  where  the 
bank  objects  to  this,  at  as  frequent  intervals  as  pos- 
sible. 

In  sending  the  statement  the  bank  returns  all  checks 
that  have  been  charged  to  the  account  during  the  period. 
Arrange  these  in  numbered  order,  and  open  your  check- 
book to  the  page  where  the  stub  of  the  earliest  number 
is  found.  Have  at  hand  two  slips  of  paper  whose  use 
will  be  described  later.  Compare  rapidly  checks  and 
stubs,  looking  only  at  the  number  and  amount  of  the 
check.  As  you  match  them,  put  a  check  mark  on  both 
stub  and  check.  The  mark  is  easier  made  large,  and 
shows  up  quicker  in  the  book  if  put  over  the  amount 


USING  BANKS  175 

rather  than  the  square  giving  the  items.  When  there 
is  a  check  missing  from  the  numbered  order,  write  the 
number,  name  of  payee  (in  brief)  and  amount  on  one 
of  the  slips  of  paper  before  mentioned.  Usually  there 
will  be  a  number  of  such  entries,  in  which  case  the 
figures  should  be  set  down  in  a  column,  for  easy  add- 
ing. If  you  find  a  discrepancy  between  the  figures  on 
the  stub  and  those  on  the  check,  note  number  and  dis- 
crepancy on  the  second  slip.  Your  attention  will  be 
called  to  any  counter  check  that  you  have  failed  to 
enter  by  its  return  to  you.  In  this  checking  any 
"raised"  check  should  be  discovered  and  promptly  re- 
ported to  the  bank. 

When  all  the  stubs  are  checked,  add  the  figures  for  the 
checks  not  returned,  and  add  this  to  the  amount  on  de- 
posit. If  a  deposit  was  made  in  the  last  few  days  of  the 
month,  look  at  the  bank  statement  to  see  if  it  reached 
the  bank  in  time  to  be  credited.  If  it  did  not,  deduct 
it  from  your  total.  Make  any  correction  of  discrepancy, 
if  you  found  any.  (The  amount  on  the  check  is  of 
course  the  one  actually  paid.)  If  the  bank  has  given 
you  a  slip  showing  exchange  or  "carrying  charge"  or 
interest  deducted,  deduct  that.  Opposite  the  last  check 
you  have  written  make  these  corrections,  in  Deposit 
column  for  additions,  in  Amount  of  check  column  for 
subtractions.  Explain  these — using  back  of  stub  if 
necessary.     Now  look  at  the  balance  on  the  bank  state- 


176         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

ment  and  see  if  it  is  the  same  as  your  own.  If  it  is 
not,  there  is  a  mistake  somewhere,  and  the  odds  are 
very  heavy  that  it  is  in  your  own  account.  If  the  hank 
does  not  give  separate  slips  for  each  charge  for  exchange 
or  carrying  charge,  as  it  should,  it  is  well  to  look  first 
on  the  bank  statement  of  payments  to  find  any  such  item. 
A  bank  does  not  send  to  a  customer  a  statement  con- 
taining any  unexplained  item.  As  most  mistakes  are 
in  addition  and  subtraction,  verify  your  own  first.  It 
is  so  rare  for  a  bank  to  make  a  mistake  there  that  it 
is  hardly  worth  considering.  Adding  machines  are  used 
by  most  banks,  and  they  do  not  make  mistakes.  This 
is  a  case  where  getting  an  exact  balance  is  worth  spend- 
ing all  the  time  necessary.  If  you  are  inexperienced  and 
cannot  find  your  error,  go  to  your  bank  and  ask  for  help. 
The  bank  is  glad  to  give  you  training,  since  in  the  end 
it  will  be  as  much  to  their  advantage  as  to  yours. 

There  are,  as  any  banker  will  tell  you,  thousands  of 
depositors  who  never  number  their  checks  and  never 
check  up  the  bank  statements.  They  are  usually  the 
same  who  write  checks  carelessly  and  often  those  who 
overdraw.  They  never  know  how  much  money  they 
actually  have  available,  as  the  bank  statement  cannot 
show  the  amount  for  checks  written  but  not  yet  col- 
lected. All  bank  checks  go  through  central  clearing 
houses,   and  very  rapidly,  but  not  everyone  cashes   a 


USING  BANKS  177 

check  quickly.  When  a  check  has  been  written  but  not 
cashed,  the  writer  of  it  has  still  the  money,  and  can 
easily  make  the  addition  in  checking  the  bank  state- 
ment. But  it  is  rather  a  nuisance  to  carry  from  month 
to  month  the  data  regarding  an  uncashed  check,  and 
not  be  able  to  keep  stubs  checked  up  to  date,  so  that  it 
is  a  matter  of  courtesy  to  cash  promptly  any  check 
received.  When  the  check  is  from  some  person  or  firm 
not  well  known,  it  is  also  safe  to  cash  the  check  before 
any  possible  transfer  of  account  or  failure  makes  it 
worthless. 

When  the  account  is  straight,  put  the  checks  into  your 
numerically  arranged  file  of  these.  Strap  to  the  pile 
(or  such  part  of  it  as  is  to  be  kept  at  hand)  the  slip 
giving  data  of  the  unreturned  checks.  When  the  next 
statement  comes,  if  any  of  these  checks  are  still  out, 
you  will  not  need  to  look  back  to  find  out  why  the  bank 
balance  is  larger  by  that  amount.  It  is  not  often  neces- 
sary to  refer  to  returned  checks.  Tie  them  (still  in 
numerical  order)  into  packages  by  years,  with  the  year 
plainly  marked  on  top.  If  you  have  plenty  of  storage 
space  you  may  like  to  keep  them  for  years,  but  they 
are  valueless  after  a  certain  time,  that  time  depending 
on  the  legal  limit  of  the  state  for  the  collection  of  debts. 
Say  this  is  7  years.  Then  when  you  add  the  1922  checks 
to  the  file,  you  can  safely  throw  away  those  for  1915. 


178         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

This  mechanical  check  on  stored  matter  saves  time  as 
well  as  storage  space,  since  the  file  never  needs  to  he 
looked  over. 

The  method  described  is  the  simplest  one,  sufficient 
for  the  average  family.  The  better  way  from  the  legal 
point  of  view  is  to  paste  each  returned  check  to  its 
stub,  and  to  keep  the  whole  book.  The  stub  has  a 
repetition  of  the  check  items,  and  both  are  original 
records.  Having  such  a  record  in  duplicate  is  better 
evidence  than  half  of  it  alone.  The  legal  limitation  as 
to  collection  of  debts  does  not  apply  to  a  suit  on  the 
ground  of  fraud,  but  fortunately  few  families  are  sub- 
jected to  such  suits. 

If  the  simpler  form  is  followed,  the  check-book  stubs 
should  be  kept  only  if  they  offer  any  information  not 
on  the  Accounts  cards.  Otherwise  they  can  be  thrown, 
away  after  a  brief  period,  say  those  from  one  check-book 
when  the  next  has  been  completely  filled,  so  that  its 
stubs  are  ready  for  filing. 

Exchange  is  often  charged  by  banks  for  cashing 
checks  on  out-of-town  banks,  unless  these  are  in  one  of 
the  financial  centers.  In  order  to  be  sure  that  the  out- 
of-town  recipient  will  receive  the  full  amount  paid  by 
the  remitter,  a  bank  draft  may  be  used.  This  is  the 
bank's  own  check,  on  which  no  exchange  is  charged,  and 
which  any  bank  will  sell  to  a  depositor.  Drafts  on  for- 
eign countries,  at  the  current  rate  of  exchange,  are  also 


USING  BANKS  179 

obtainable  through  the  bank  and  are  often  the  most 
economical  way  of  sending  money  to  another  country. 

A  certified  check  is  one  that  is  taken  to  the  bank 
cashier  for  certification  before  being  paid  out.  The 
bank  sets  aside  the  sum  represented,  to  be  paid  only  on 
presentation  of  this  particular  check,  so  that  there  is 
no  danger  of  its  being  returned  to  the  person  who  asks 
for  the  money,  marked  aNo  funds."  Transactions  be- 
tween strangers,  if  in  large  amounts,  should  be  con- 
ducted by  certified  checks. 

Overdraft  is  a  frequent  occurrence  in  banks.  Some 
depositors,  especially  business  men,  may  overdraw  de- 
liberately, knowing  that  funds  will  soon  come  in  to  set 
their  accounts  straight.  If  the  depositor  of  a  personal 
or  household  account  overdraws,  it  is  usually  through 
inadvertence.  The  check-book  shows  a  larger  balance 
than  the  bank  ledger,  because  the  depositor  has  made 
a  mistake  in  addition  or  subtraction.  The  first  time 
a  customer  overdraws,  the  bank  takes  no  other  step 
than  to  notify  the  depositor  courteously  and  ask  for 
immediate  deposit  to  cover  the  deficit.  If  a  depositor 
continues  to  overdraw,  he  or  she  is  usually  warned  by 
the  bank  that  no  further  overdraft  will  be  allowed.  This 
means  that  the  next  time  a  check  is  presented  calling 
for  a  larger  amount  than  the  depositor's  balance,  it  will 
not  be  honored.  That  is,  it  will  not  be  cashed,  but 
returned  to  the  presenter  marked  "$o  funds"  or  "Insuf- 


180         GETTING  YOUE  MONEY'S  WOETH 

ficient  funds.'7  A  check  is  "protested"  when  protest  is 
entered  before  a  notary  public,  in  "which  case  the  drawer 
must  pay  the  notary's  fee.  A  depositor  who  overdraws 
has  poor  credit  with  a  bank,  and  this  affects  his  or  her 
credit  everywhere. 

Endorsing  a  check  means  receipting  for  it.  The  per- 
son to  whom  it  is  drawn  lays  the  check  on  the  desk  or 
table,  turns  it  toward  him  face  down,  and  writes  his  or 
her  name  across  the  back  of  the  check,  near  the  left 
hand  end.  Writing  the  name  elsewhere  increases  the 
work  of  the  bank.  The  name  must  be  written  as  it  ap- 
pears on  the  face  of  the  check,  and  where  there  is  any 
inaccuracy  except  the  omission  of  an  initial,  the  name 
should  be  written  accurately  underneath.  To  use  the 
example  given  before,  M.  L.  Anderson  or  Mary  Ander- 
son needs  no  further  comment,  but  if  the  other  mistakes 
are  made,  the  endorsement  should  read 

Mary  L.  Andersen 
(Mary  L.  Anderson) 

Marie  Anderson 
(Mary  L.  Anderson) 

When  the  person  to  whom  the  check  is  made  wishes  to 
deposit  it  to  his  bank  account,  he  endorses 

Pay  to  Blank  National  Bank  or  order 
John  M.  Jones 


USING  BANKS  181 

If  he  wishes  to  pay  it  to  some  person  or  firm  for  goods 
received,  he  should  endorse  to  that  firm: 

Pay  to 

Black,  Green  and  Brown  or  order 
John  M.  Jones 

If  the  words  "or  order"  (or  "to  the  order  of,"  which 
form  is  also  used)  are  not  added,  the  endorsement  is 
restrictive,  and  strictly  speaking  the  payee  can  ohtain 
the  money  only  at  the  bank  on  which  the  check  is  drawn. 
Although  hanks  are  not  strict  in  exacting  this,  the 
proper  form  should  be  used  as  a  matter  of  good  business 
habit.  The  receiver  must  write  his  own  signature  as  the 
receipt  for  the  check.  If  the  check  is  endorsed  at  first 
only  with  Jones's  name,  he  may  have  no  proof  that  he 
paid  it  to  Black,  Green  and  Brown. 

Checks  drawn  to  "Bearer"  are  the  same  as  cash,  as 
they  are  cashed  on  any  one's  endorsement.  They  are 
rarely  advisable,  except  when  one  wishes  to  procure 
cash  in  return  for  one. 

Joint  Account.  This  means  an  account  on  which 
two  or  more  people,  usually  husband  and  wife  or  busi- 
ness partners,  have  an  equal  right  to  draw.  The  ac- 
count is  opened  by  both  together  and  either  signature  is 
enough  on  a  check.  Many  recommend  this  type  of  ac- 
count for  the  family,  husband  and  wife  drawing  equally 
against  it.    If  a  minimum  deposit  is  required,  there  is  a 


182        GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

money  saving  in  having  only  one  account,  but  from 
every  other  point  of  view  this  is  a  poor  method. 
It  is  much  more  difficult  to  keep  the  record  of  the 
account  straight  when  two  people  are  using  it.  There 
is  a  general  belief  that  there  is  an  advantage  in  a 
joint  account  in  case  of  the  death  of  one  of  the  par- 
ties to  it,  on  the  ground  that  the  money  is  still  available 
to  the  other.  This  belief  is  founded  on  tradition,  not 
on  present  day  fact.  In  all  but  a  very  few  of  the  states 
on  the  death  of  one  of  the  parties  to  a  joint  account  the 
ivhole  deposit  is  considered  the  property  of  the  de- 
ceased, and  the  survivor  cannot  draw  against  it.  Usu- 
ally permission  can  be  obtained  from  the  proper  state 
official  for  the  survivor  to  use  the  account,  but  inheri- 
tance tax  must  be  paid  on  the  whole  sum.  If  the  amount 
is  divided  equally  in  two  accounts  under  the  two  names, 
the  survivor  not  only  has  the  money  in  his  or  her  ac- 
count available  as  usual,  but  loses  only  half  as  much 
by  payment  of  inheritance  tax. 

Trust  Accounts  have  the  same  disadvantages  as 
joint  accounts,  and  are  therefore  not  advised. 

Safety  deposit  departments  are  maintained  by  many 
banks,  where  for  a  few  dollars  a  year  a  box  can  be  rented 
that  is  as  near  perfect  security  as  anything  earthly  can 
be,  where  family  papers  of  importance,  insurance  poli- 
cies, bonds  and  the  like  can  be  kept.  A  small  amount 
of  jewelry  can  be  stored  in  such  a  box,  and  there  are 


USING  BANKS  183 

larger  ones  to  be  rented  for  more  jewelry,  silver  and 
other  valuables.  The  box  is  accessible  to  the  authorized 
person  or  persons  at  any  time  during  banking  hours, 
and  its  use  may  save  serious  loss.  It  should  be  noted 
that  there  is  the  same  disadvantage  in  holding  a  safety 
deposit  box  jointly  that  there  is  with  the  joint  bank 
account.  On  the  death  of  any  person  who  has  the  right 
to  open  the  box,  the  whole  contents  of  the  box  are  con- 
sidered the  property  of  the  deceased,  and  sealed  by  the 
proper  official.  The  survivor  must  prove  title  to  any 
of  the  contents  of  the  box  that  he  claims. 

After  the  initial  visit  to  open  a  checking  bank  ac- 
count, it  is  not  necessary  to  go  in  person  to  a  bank  to 
continue  as  a  depositor  there.  All  the  business  can  be 
conducted  by  mail,  checks  being  deposited  by  letter, 
cash  by  registered  letter,  and  the  checks  drawn  to  Self 
or  Bearer  being  cashed  at  some  office  or  store  where  one 
is  known.  It  is  therefore  not  necessary  to  change  banks 
when  one  moves  to  some  distance.  But  there  is  a  great 
advantage  in  being  personally  known  to  the  bank  offi- 
cials, since  personal  acquaintance  always  makes  coopera- 
tion easier.  And  although  any  bank  officer  will  give 
advice  as  to  investments  to  any  depositor,  it  is  only 
human  that  he  should  take  a  little  more  trouble  for 
one  with  whom  he  has  a  pleasant  acquaintance.  As  is 
pointed  out  in  the  next  chapter,  bankers  are  excellent 


184        GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

advisers  as  to  safe  investments.  They  tend  to  be  con- 
servative, which  is  very  helpful  to  most  would-be  in- 
vestors. And  every  depositor  has  a  right  to  ask  his  own 
bank  for  help. 


XV 

SAVINGS  AND  INVESTMENTS 

One  of  the  real  tragedies  of  human  life  is  the  loss  of 
money  that  has  been  saved  by  constant  care  in  the  use 
of  one's  resources,  by  deprivation  and  even  by  privation. 
To  go  without  this  or  that  much-desired  pleasure  or 
luxury  for  years,  in  order  to  have  a  little  stored  away 
against  old  age,  and  then  to  see  it  all  swept  away  in  a 
moment,  not  only  discourages  one  with  saving  but  even 
with  life. 

It  is  because  putting  money  in  banks  or  investing  in 
some  other  way  has  so  often  resulted  in  total  loss  that 
the  temptation  of  the  small  saver,  ignorant  of  the  way  to 
choose  a  safe  form  of  storage  under  the  supervision  of 
some  one  else,  is  to  hoard  the  actual  cash  in  an  old  stock- 
ing, a  discarded  teapot,  a  hole  under  a  loose  board  in 
the  floor,  in  the  mattress  or  in  some  other  of  the  tra- 
ditional places  for  this  purpose.  The  double  disadvan- 
tage of  this  method  is  the  loss  of  interest  and  the  dan- 
ger of  loss  by  fire  or  thieves.  Thieves,  to  be  sure,  work 
in  equally  effective  ways  to  steal  the  money  when  it  is 
invested,  but  there  are  still  ways  to  keep  the  money 
much  more  safely  than  is  possible  to  the  individual. 

185 


186        GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

Cash  can  of  course  be  kept  in  a  safety  deposit  box,  but 
then  the  "money  is  not  working."  This  is  a  loss  not 
only  to  the  individual  (of  interest)  but  to  the  commun- 
ity, since  money  is  needed  as  capital,  to  develop  agricul- 
ture, industry  and  commerce'. 

The  two  unquestionably  safe  investments  are  sav- 
ings banks  and  government  bonds  (nation,  state  or  city). 
But  even  here  there  are  warnings  to  give.  The  bank 
should  be  one  that  is  under  state  supervision.  Many  pri- 
vate banks  have  conducted  their  transactions  with  scru- 
pulous honesty  and  excellent  judgment,  proving  as  safe 
as  any  state  or  national  bank.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
sum  is  appalling  of  the  losses  suffered  by  those  who 
trusted  their  money  to  some  individual  banker,  well- 
known  in  the  community  and  fully  trusted  by  every 
one.  A  state  or  a  national  bank  may,  in  the  picturesque 
phrase  used  to  express  failure,  close  its  doors,  but  this 
is  becoming  increasingly  more  rare,  as  the  government 
watches  more  closely  to  prevent  such  a  catastrophe.  A 
savings  bank  is  limited  by  law  in  the  amount  it  may 
receive  from  one  depositor.  $3,000  is  a  common  limit. 
But  the  person  or  the  family  who  has  nothing  in  the 
world  to  fall  back  on  but  that  amount  would  do  well 
to  divide  even  that  sum  among  three  or  four  banks, 
to  lessen  the  risk  of  possible  loss. 

The  interest  on  savings  bank  deposits  is  rarely  more 
than  4%,  but  there  are  few  communities  where  there 


SAVINGS  AND  INVESTMENTS  187 

is  no  bank  available  that  pays  as  much  as  this.  If  there 
is  no  savings  bank  at  all  in  the  town,  or  one  paying 
only  3%,  it  is  always  possible  to  open  an  account  in  a 
bank  in  another  town  or  city,  depositing  by  money  order 
or  check.  It  is  harder  to  withdraw  money  immediately 
in  case  of  emergency,  but  that  is  not  always  a  dis- 
advantage. And  there  is  always  some  one  in  the  town 
who  will  lend  money  needed  in  this  way,  when  it  can 
be  got  from  the  bank  in  a  few  days. 

Except  in  the  few  cases  of  unstable  government,  the 
bonds  of  a  nation,  a  county,  or  a  municipality  are  secure 
as  far  as  loss  from  default  goes,  but  unless  they  are 
registered — that  is,  appear  on  a  government  register  as 
the  property  of  the  individual — they  are  negotiable, 
which  means  that  they  are  easily  converted  into  cash 
by  the  person  who  steals  them.  They  must  therefore  be 
kept  in  a  safety  deposit  box  for  security.  If  they  are 
destroyed  by  fire  and  are  registered,  duplicates  can  be 
obtained,  but  if  not  registered  and  lost  or  stolen,  there 
is  seldom  any  redress.  When  such  a  loss  occurs,  how- 
ever, the  loser  should  go  at  once  to  the  local  banker  or 
lawyer  to  see  whether  he  can  hope  to  recover  anything. 
The  governmental  body  issuing  the  bonds  does  not 
always  provide  for  registration. 

Until  recent  years  government  bonds  have  been  con- 
sidered an  investment  that  was  safe,  to  be  sure,  but 
not  a  profitable  one  as  far  as  interest  goes.    Usually  this 


188        GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

was  no  more  than  the  4%  of  the  savings  bank,  and  often 
it  was  less.  But  since  the  European  war  has  forced  most 
of  the  nations  of  the  world  to  huge  debts,  the  rate  of 
interest  has  risen,  and  many-  bonds  of  European  coun- 
tries or  cities  are  available  that  bear  a  large  interest 
on  their  face — as  high  as  8% — and  which  actually  bring 
higher  interest  because  they  are  sold  below  par;  that 
is  a  $100  bond  costs  less  than  $100.  The  income  from 
such  bonds  is  not  tax  exempt,  but  any  banker  will  be 
able  to  give  a  depositor  the  figures  of  real  return  on  one 
bond  as  compared  with  the  other.  The  securities  of 
any  stable  government  are  literally  secure,  since  the 
honor  and  credit  of  the  government  are  back  of  them. 
To  many  investment  in  foreign  bonds  seems  forbid- 
dingly complicated,  because  in  cashing  each  coupon  one 
must  fill  out  a  form  for  the  U.  S.  Government,  but  any 
ordinarily  intelligent  person  can  soon  learn  to  do  this 
correctly,  and  the  small  amount  of  time  involved  can 
be  counted  as  money-earning  if  the  investment  brings 
a  higher  interest  than  those  with  less  troublesome  ways 
of  collecting  the  money. 

The  interest  on  bonds  is  collected  by  cutting  off  the 
little  strip  of  paper  attached  to  the  bond  that  is  called 
a  coupon.  The  date  at  which  this  may  be  turned  into 
money  is  printed  plainly  on  the  coupon.  The  owner 
should  cash  the  coupon  as  soon  as  possible  after  it  is 
due,  in  order  to  have  the  full  use  of  his  money.    When 


SAVINGS  AND  INVESTMENTS  189 

the  family  or  the  individual  has  a  number  of  such  bonds, 
with  interest  falling  due  at  different  dates,  there  should 
be  a  list  on  a  card  showing  date  due,  type  of  bond, 
amount  to  be  collected.  This  will  call  attention  to  the 
time  of  collection,  which  is  also  the  time  of  the  receipt 
of  income  from  this  source.  This  card  is  kept  in  the 
Accounts  file. 

The  full  list  of  the  family  investments  is  made  in 
general  on  the  Assets  card,  but  all  bonds  or  other  securi- 
ties bearing  serial  numbers  should  be  listed  on  a  spe- 
cial card,  giving  the  name  of  bond,  rate  of  interest, 
amount  and  serial  number.  It  is  highly  advisable  to 
have  a  duplicate  of  this  list  kept  outside  the  home  in 
a  safe  place.  If  no  other  is  available,  use  the  home  of 
a  trusted  relative  or  friend,  asking  him  to  put  the 
sealed  envelope  with  the  record,  plainly  marked  outside 
"Property  of  John  M.  Jones,  deposited  with  L.  P. 
Green  and  to  be  returned  by  him  on  demand  to  John 
M.  Jones  or  his  heirs,"  and  the  date.  Then  in  case 
of  destruction  of  the  original  list  by  fire,  water  or  other 
form  of  loss,  the  second  is  available.  All  this  may 
seem  ridiculously  detailed,  but  when  one  has  money  one 
has  also  care.     It  is  the  price  of  keeping  it. 

Investments  in  other  securities  than  those  of  gov- 
ernments may  be  advisable,  but  they  should  never  be 
made  without  the  advice  of  experts.  The  banker  is 
perhaps  the  best,  but  often  one  knows  and  trusts  a  busi- 


190         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

ness  man  whose  advice  will  be  equally  valuable.  To 
ask  several  people  of  good  judgment  is  better  than  to 
ask  one.  Many  people  hesitate  to  ask  advice  either 
because  they  think  the  matter  too  small  and  too  per- 
sonal to  bother  a  busy  man  about  or  because  they  are  re- 
luctant to  violate  secrecy  regarding  their  own  affairs. 
The  first  reason  is  not  a  good  one,  since  it  is  part  of 
the  banker's  business  to  give  such  advice  and  it  is  part 
of  the  community  service  that  any  business  man  worth 
consulting  is  only  too  glad  to  render.  The  second  reason 
is  equally  bad.  If  money  is  stored  as  coin  or  bills  in 
the  old  teapot,  secrecy  is  certainly  advisable,  as  knowl- 
edge of  it  might  lead  to  loss  by  theft.  But  there  is  noth- 
ing in  invested  money  that  needs  to  be  concealed.  Its 
existence  cannot  be  concealed  from  the  income  tax  man 
without  perjury.  And  the  banker  regards  confidential 
statements  from  his  clients  just  as  the  physician  or  the 
lawyer  does.  The  business  man  who  having  been  con- 
sulted in  confidence  would  tell  his  friends  that  John 
Jones  had  $300  to  invest  would  not  be  asked  for  advice 
many  times.  Yet  either  banker  or  business  man  may 
be  justified  in  saying  that  he  is  sure  that  John  Jones's 
credit  is  good  when  he  is  asked  about  him. 

Building  and  Loan  Associations  offer  excellent  op- 
portunities when  their  management  is  safeguarded  by 
the  state,  since  they  pay  good  interest  and  make  pro- 
vision for  lending  to  holders  of  shares.     But  there  have 


SAVINGS  AND  INVESTMENTS  191 

been  serious  losses  in  some  associations  of  this  kind, 
and  one  should  make  sure  of  the  standing  and  security  of 
any  in  which  one  invests.  Credit  Unions  with  similar 
privileges  exist  in  some  states. 

Any  security  which  is  a  legal  investment  for  a  sav- 
ings bank  is  of  course  a  safe  investment.  But  one 
should  make  sure  that  the  security  is  so  listed. 

The  name  of  the  owner  should  never  be  written  on 
the  bond.  If  this  is  done  in  pencil,  it  is  usually  possible 
so  to  erase  it  as  to  conceal  the  fact  that  it  has  been 
marked,  but  writing  in  ink  cannot  be  so  erased.  A 
"marked  bond"  has  a  lower  market  value  than  the  same 
bond  unmarked.  Where  bonds  belonging  to  different 
members  of  the  family  are  kept  together,  it  is  easy  to 
distinguish  ownership  by  having  a  list  of  the  serial 
numbers  of  the  bonds  belonging  to  each.  In  a  safety 
deposit  box  it  is  well  to  put  the  bonds  belonging  to 
each  person  in  an  envelope  plainly  marked  "Property 
of — owner,"  with  a  list  of  the  serial  numbers  and 
amounts  below. 

In  buying  any  kind  of  bond  the  possibility  of  forced 
sale  must  be  kept  in  mind.  A  bond  bought  at  a  price 
that  means  good  interest  ma,y  bring  a  lower  price  still 
if  the  owner  has  to  part  with  it  at  a  given  time,  and 
this  price  may  mean  that  the  bond  has  been  a  less  prof- 
itable investment  than  the  savings  bank  would  prove. 
Every  family  should  have  a  cash  reserve  available,  ordi- 


192         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

narily  in  the  savings  bank,  before  buying  the  securities 
that  are  profitable  when  one  can  keep  them  and  not 
profitable  when  one  must  part  with  them.  For  a  tem- 
porary need  of  cash  it  is  often  better  to  borrow  than  to 
sell.  Any  bank  lends  on  securities  to  any  depositor  in 
whose  need  and  judgment  they  can  feel  confidence. 

The  truth  of  this  last  paragraph  has  been  brought 
home  to  thousands  of  Americans  and  going-to-be-Ameri- 
cans in  the  last  few  years.  Often  at  a  great  sacrifice 
they  subscribed  to  Liberty  Bonds  at  par — $100  for  a 
$100  bond.  They  were  incited  by  patriotism,  but  were 
told  over  and  over  again,  with  the  authority  of  the 
government,  that  they  were  also  profiting  themselves. 
They  put  all  they  could  scrape  together  into  the  bonds, 
often  taking  money  they  had  in  the  savings  banks.  Then 
came  a  period  of  business  depression,  of  unemployment 
and  of  high  prices  that  drove  them  to  sell  their  bonds  to 
provide  the  necessities  of  life  for  their  families.  And 
thousands  had  to  sell  when  they  received  only  $83  for 
their  $100.  That  was  a  stunning  loss.  To  the  more 
ignorant  it  seemed  that  they  had  been  cheated  by  the 
United  States  Government.  The  government  is  justi- 
fied in  calling  the  bonds  a  good  investment  if  and  when 
those  bonds  can  be  held  by  the  buyer  until  maturity. 
Then,  at  the  date  given  on  the  bond,  the  government 
will  pay  the  full  $100.  But  it  is  hard  to  prove  to  the 
one  who  has  had  to  sell  at  a  sacrifice  that  the  invest- 


SAVINGS  AND  INVESTMENTS  193 

ment  "was  a  profitable  one.  Undoubtedly  the  experience 
will  discourage  many  of  them  from  ever  purchasing  such 
a  "safe"  bond  again. 

Many  of  these  people,  if  they  are  not  entirely  discour- 
aged from  investment,  will  turn  to  the  securities  offer- 
ing a  chance  of  very  large  profit.  If  they  may  lose  their 
savings  anyway,  why  not  get  good  return  while  they 
have  them?  This  is  another  opportunity  for  that  des- 
picable group  who  make  their  living  by  selling  to  the 
people  eager  to  get  large  returns  and  ignorant  as  to  safe 
or  doubtful  financial  methods,  securities  that  are  or  prob- 
ably will  become  valueless  or  at  least  of  small  value. 
The  men  who  make  such  fraud  the  business  of  their 
lives  know  about  how  much  money  they  can  hope  to  get 
from  a  given  section  of  the  country  in  a  given  year. 
They  know  how  to  find  the  widow  left  with  a  life  insur- 
ance paid  in  cash,  the  elderly  woman  or  man  who  has 
just  sold  out  a  little  retail  business  in  order  to  retire, 
the  inexperienced  boy  or  girl  who  in  the  first  few  years 
of  wage-earning  has  saved  $500  as  the  basis  of  a  for- 
tune. They  will  tell  you  perhaps  that  these  "gulls"  all 
deserve  to  lose  their  money  because  they  are  fools  and 
greedy.  Some  one  will  get  it  anyway,  because  they  are 
bound  to  get  a  higher  return  in  interest  than  is  pos- 
sible except  by  hard  work  or  exceptional  luck. 

It  is  true  that  there  are  few  of  us  who  do  not  want  to 
get  more  than  we  really  earn.     Some  day  we  may  reach 


194         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WOETH 

the  moral  height  where  we  are  unwilling  to  take  more 
than  a  legitimate  return  for  our  work  or  for  the  work- 
income  that  we  have  stored  up  in  savings.  But  now 
we  remember  the  tale  of  this  man  or  that  woman  who 
invested  a  few  hundreds  in  some  world-famous  business 
just  at  the  beginning  and  without  any  work  or  even 
thought  on  his  or  her  part  now  finds  the  investment 
worth  thousands  and  bringing  in  a  good  income.  Great 
luck.  Yes,  and  a  discourager  of  the  toil  by  which  the 
great  mass  of  mankind  must  earn  their  living.  The 
man  who  puts  his  money,  his  intelligence,  his  ability, 
his  time,  his  very  life  into  his  business  fairly  earns  a 
large  profit:  the  stockholder  who  profits  by  work  in 
which  he  does  not  share— profits  beyond  a  reasonable  in- 
terest on  his  money — is  getting  a  return  for  luck,  just 
as  the  gambler  gets  his. 

Long  ago  the  wise  Mr.  Dooley  bade  Mr.  Hennessy 
remember  that  "Whin  a  man  gets  more  than  6%  f'r 
his  money  it's  a  thousan'  to  wan  he's  payin'  it  himsilf." 
He  meant,  of  course,  that  the  larger  interest  was 
paid  at  the  risk  of  depreciation  or  loss  of  the  principal. 
Mr.  Dooley  would  raise  the  sum  to  8%  now,  perhaps  to 
10%,  but  the  principal  back  of  his  first  remark  is  un- 
changed. There  is  a  limit  at  which  investment  becomes 
speculation,  and  speculation  is  not  a  legitimate  use  of 
savings.     The  banker  and  the  sound  business  man  will 


SAVINGS  AND  INVESTMENTS  195 

not  advise  you  to  try  to  get  100%  interest  on  oil  stock, 
or  40%  on  a  rubber  stock.  They  may  prevent  your 
making  some  sum  of  money;  by  and  large  they  will 
surely  prevent  your  losing  more  than  that  sum. 

Before  a  discussion  of  saving  by  insurance  must  come 
one  regarding  the  purpose  of  saving.  This  has  been 
touched  on  already,  but  the  subject  will  bear  some 
repetition  and  fuller  discussion.  Savings  may  be  for 
an  emergency  fund,  as  provision  for  a  special  purpose 
like  the  college  education  of  a  child  or  a  longed-for  trip 
to  Thibet,  or  they  may  be  to  provide  an  income  for  the 
non-earning  period  of  later  years.  Saving  for  emer- 
gencies has  already  been  dealt  with  and  its  importance 
urged.  Such  a  fund  is  best  placed  in  a  savings  bank  or 
in  some  security  on  which  cash  can  be  obtained  readily 
when  the  emergency  arises.  If  the  fund  is  not  used,  it 
is  of  course  eventually  added  to  the  savings  for  other 
purposes.  If  it  must  be  drawn  on,  the  money  taken 
should  be  considered  a  loan  and  returned  to  the  fund 
when  payment  is  possible.  It  should  not  be  hard  for 
the  individual  or  the  family  to  decide  what  is  a  fair 
amount  for  such  an  emergency  fund.  If  the  possibility 
of  drawing  on  savings  in  an  emergency  is  not  kept  in 
mind,  it  is  a  discouragement  when  the  savings  that 
one  had  thought  of  as  provision  for  other  purposes  have 
to  be  used  to  pay  doctors  and  nurses.     "What  is  the 


196         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

use  of  saving  ?  The  money  goes  just  like  other  money." 
This  is  only  a  matter  of  psychology,  hut  so  are  many  of 
the  important  things  in  life. 

Savings  for  a  special  purpose  are  easily  administered. 
The  sum  once  decided  on,  and  the  probable  date  of  use 
calculated,  there  only  remains  the  choice  of  a  safe  in- 
vestment that  can  be  turned  into  cash  at  the  proper 
time.  Even  when  the  amount  of  the  fund  is  indefinite, 
as  may  be  when  one  decides  to  make  a  given  fund  "as 
large  as  possible,"  the  conditions  are  the  same. 

Saving  to  provide  an  income  for  the  non-earning 
years  brings  up  many  questions.  How  long  is  the  period 
of  earning?  If  it  may  be  to  65,  do  you  nevertheless 
wish  to  stop  or  lessen  work  at  60  or  55  ?  Will  the 
earning  power  as  expressed  in  the  income  increase  up 
to  that  point  ?  If  not,  up  to  what  point  ?  Should  you 
plan  to  save  a  larger  proportion  of  your  income  at  any 
given  period  ?  Is  part  of  the  provision  for  your  old 
age  to  be  in  your  children  ?  If  so,  how  much  ?  How 
many  must  the  income  from  savings  provide  for  ?  Have 
you  any  obligation  to  provide  an  income  for  wife,  chil- 
dren, an  old  mother,  or  any  one,  in  case  of  your  death 
before  the  earning  period  is  over?  Do  you  wish  to  live 
on  the  same  scale  as  at  present?  This  seems  a  bewil- 
dering list,  yet  the  answers  to  most  of  the  questions  are 
easy,  and  none  are  very  hard.  The  individual  or 
family  after  answering  them  can  calculate  how  much 


SAVINGS  AND  INVESTMENTS  197 

must  be  saved  each  year  so  that  at  the  end  of  the  time 
the  income  will  be  what  is  needed. 

Life  insurance  offers  methods  of  saving  for  more 
purposes  than  are  often  considered  by  those  outside  in- 
surance work.  The  young  married  man  dependent  on 
current  earnings  takes  a  "straight"  life  insurance,  on 
which  he  pays  a  yearly  premium  of  a  comparatively 
small  sum,  and  on  which  no  money  is  paid  except  at 
his  death,  when  his  wife,  or  any  one  to  whom  he  assigns 
it,  receives  it  all.  The  parents  who  are  concerned  as  to 
college  for  their  boy  or  girl,  may  take  out  for  either  a 
twenty-year  endowment  insurance  policy,  requiring  an 
annual  payment  of  a  proportionately  larger  sum,  but 
the  whole  amount  of  the  insurance  being  re- 
ceived at  the  end  of  the  twenty  years.  The  man  (or 
woman)  who  is  not  in  a  family  partnership  and  whose 
obligation  is  only  to  himself  in  his  old  age,  takes  out 
an  income  bond,  on  which  he  makes  annual  payments 
until  he  is  fifty,  or  fifty-five,  or  sixty  or  what  not.  At 
the  end  of  the  time  agreed  in  the  contract  of  the  bond, 
he  receives  an  annuity,  a  fixed  yearly  income,  paid  in 
monthly  instalments  to  the  end  of  his  life.  These  are 
three  of  many  forms.  Any  life  insurance  company  will 
tell  of  many  others.  Insurance  agents  are  noted  for 
persuasiveness,  and  it  is  well  to  check  their  recommenda- 
tions by  the  advice  of  the  banker  or  the  experienced 
friend,  especially  as  all  of  them  do  not  always  remem- 


198         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

ber  differences  in  purpose.  The  details  of  life  insur- 
ance are  voluminous — the  amount  one  may  borrow,  and 
the  conditions  of  a  loan,  the  "redemption  value,"  or 
the  amount  one  receives  if  one  wishes  to  give  up  the 
arrangement,  the  "disability,  clause"  that  for  some 
added  payment  offers  some  income  in  case  of  accident 
or  prolonged  illness.  Every  one  should  know  some- 
thing of  the  possibilities  of  insurance  that  means  in- 
come, as  well  as  of  insurance  against  damage  and  loss. 
It  is  to  be  noted  that  the  old  discrimination  against 
women  by  charging  higher  rates  to  them  is  rapidly  dis- 
appearing. No  woman  need  insure  in  a  company  that 
still  makes  such  charges. 

The  "income  bond"  deserves,  however,  especial  recom- 
mendation to  the  self-supporting  woman  who  does  not 
see  any  possibility  of  saving  enough  to  provide  an  in- 
come for  her  years  of  retirement  from  active  paid 
work.  If  she  does  accumulate  enough,  it  is  usually  at 
the  expense  of  her  present  comfort  and  on  a  basis  that 
means  only  meager  living.  If  she  puts  the  same 
amount  into  an  income  bond  she  has  a  safe  and  steady 
income  which  no  one  can  cheat  her  out  of  or  lure  away 
from  her.  The  old  lady  who  receives  a  hundred  dol- 
lars on  the  first  day  of  every  month  and  to  whom  the 
payment  is  guaranteed  up  to  the  very  last  month 
of  her  life  is  independent  and  self-respecting  and  com- 
mands respect  in  others  as  far  as  financial   standing 


SAYINGS  AND  INVESTMENTS  199 

goes.  And  thousands  of  women  who  could  easily  from 
their  present  earnings  provide  themselves  with  that  in- 
come at  sixty  will  find  themselves  instead  at  that  age 
with  no  more  than  a  few  thousands  which  even  if 
invested  to  the  best  possible  advantage,  will  bring 
in  only  four  or  five  hundred  dollars  a  year.  In  taking 
an  income  bond  one  of  course  gives  up  the  money  paid 
in  (unless  one  withdraws  the  arrangement  or  dies  be- 
fore the  annuity  is  paid)  and  cannot  leave  it  to  others 
when  death  puts  an  end  to  one's  use  of  it.  It  is  there- 
fore not  a  right  method  for  those  who  have  an  obliga- 
tion to  others  that  should  be  met  in  the  form  of  a 
legacy. 

Insurance  companies  are  now  generally  as  closely 
supervised  by  the  state  as  are  the  banks.  They 
are  safe,  as  far  as  human  institutions  can  be  safe. 
It  is  unwise  to  insure  in  a  company  not  under  super- 
vision. The  contract  with  an  insurance  company  is 
called  a  policy,  and  each  payment  is  a  premium.  A 
beneficiary  is  the  person  to  whom  the  money  is  to  be 
paid  in  case  of  the  death  of  the  insured  person. 

Pensions  paid  by  governments  or  institutions  are  a 
form  of  provision  for  the  non-earning  years  that  the  in- 
dividual may  find  open  to  him.  They  need  no  consider- 
ation here. 

Saving  through  payments  to  fraternal  societies  or 
orders  is  also  not  dealt  with  here,  as  these  are  of  too 


200         GETTING  YOUR  MONEY'S  WORTH 

many  types.  Some  are  excellent,  yet  there  have  been 
serious  losses  through  others.  The  expert  should  be 
consulted,  unless  sharing  in  them  is  primarily  a  mat- 
ter of  loyalty.  Even  when  it  is,  there  may  be  a  choice 
between  putting  all  or  only  part  of  one's  savings  into 
the  one  form  of  investment. 

Family  savings  are  best  invested  divided  between 
husband  and  wife,  or  brother  and  sister.  Joint  invest- 
ments have  the  same  disadvantages  as  joint  bank  ac- 
counts. On  the  death  of  one  person  concerned  they  are 
treated  as  the  sole  property  of  the  deceased,  and  the 
inheritance  tax  must  be  paid  on  the  full  amount. 

One  word  as  to  the  making  of  wills.  Every  person 
who  has  any  property  at  all  should  make  a  will,  under 
the  direction  of  a  lawyer.  The  settlement  of  an  estate 
of  even  a  few  hundred  dollars  is  much  easier  if  there 
is  a  will,  and  the  property  goes  to  the  persons  or  insti- 
tutions that  the  owner  of  it  wishes  to  have  it.  It  is 
unwise  to  appoint  a  single  individual  as  executor  (the 
person  who  sees  that  the  will  is  carried  into  effect), 
although  a  Trust  Company  may  safely  be  so  appointed. 
The  individual  dies,  perhaps  before  his  work  as  ex- 
ecutor is  done ;  the  Trust  Company  does  not  die. 

The  economist  who  cries  "Save!"  to  every  one  is 
right,  where  the  income  allows  more  than  the  bare 
necessities,  and  is  still  a  moderate  one.  The  person 
living  on  income  from  investments  needs  to  save  an 


SAVINGS  AND  INVESTMENTS  201 

emergency  fund,  at  least  in  the  earlier  years,  to  be 
drawn  on  in  years  when  the  investments  fail  to  bring 
in  the  regular  income.  Every  one  needs  to  save  an 
emergency  fund  for  any  imperative  call  on  the  in- 
come that  demands  a  considerable  sum  but  is  not  pro- 
vided for  in  the  budget.  Those  who  live  on  current 
earnings,  whether  these  are  wages,  salaries,  profits  or 
fees,  need  to  make  some  provision  for  an  income  when 
the  annual  earned  income  dwindles  or  ceases.  But 
next  to  the  exhortation  aSave !"  comes  "Invest  your 
savings  wisely!"  If  the  second  precept  is  not  kept 
in  mind  the  first  may  in  the  end  prove  useless. 


XVI 
THE  RESULT 

It  would  be  pleasant  to  promise,  as  the  old  saw  does 
so  glibly  to  those  who  go  early  to  bed  and  are  early  to 
rise,  that  the  making  of  a  budget  and  the  checking  of 
it  by  accounts  would  make  every  one  "healthy,  wealthy 
and  wise."  But  that  would  be  to  promise  too  much. 
Certainly  one  should  be  nearer  "wealthy"  and  "wise," 
at  least,  if  one  has  been  faithful  to  the  plan,  but  the 
budget  is  not  a  panacea,  or  any  form  of  magic,  white 
or  black.  It  cannot  make  possible  to  us  the  spending 
all  the  money  we  would  like,  or  the  getting  from 'the 
money  we  have  all  that  we  desire.  But  it  can  give 
us  the  satisfaction  that  comes  from  any  application 
of  intelligence  to  an  important  problem. 

The  plea  of  this  book  is  that  accounts  (in  conjunc- 
tion with  a  budget)  are  interesting,  even  entertaining  to 
keep  and  to  study.  But  they  cannot  be  either  for  the 
person  who  refuses  to  find  any  interest  in  the  considera- 
tion of  how  best  to  use  his  or  her  resources.  There  is 
no  question  that  "you  get  your  money's  worth"  to  a 

greater  extent  with  a  plan  than  without,   but  not  if 

202 


THE  EESULT  203 

the  plan  is  made  reluctantly  and  looked  on  as  an  ogre 
that  threatens  to  kill  pleasure  whenever  he  sees  it. 

Further  than  this,  those  who  plan  and  spend  for 
purely  selfish  ends — just  to  get  the  best  food  and 
clothing  and  shelter  and  fun  for  themselves  out  of  their 
dollars  and  cents — defeat  their  own  end  as  they  seek 
happiness.  They  are  not  the  happy  folk,  even  if  every 
penny  has  bought  just  what  they  wanted  it  to  buy. 
Planning  a  budget — the  way  one  family  or  individual 
is  to  use  the  power  latent  in  bill  and  coin — is  a  process 
that  affects  society  far  beyond  the  walls  of  the  house 
in  which  it  is  planned.  It  is  the  social  aspect  that 
gives  the  budget  its  great  importance.  But  fortunately 
this  is  a  case  where  two  ends  may  be  attained  by  the 
same  means.  The  kind  of  planning  and  of  carrying 
out  the  plan  that  is  most  profitable  to  society  as  a  whole 
is  the  same  kind  that  brings  to  those  who  plan  the 
rewards  for  which  they  may  reasonably  hope. 


INDEX 


Ability,  as  asset,  125 
Accounts,  85-108 

reason  for,  0,  85 

basis  for  budget,  19 

classification,  27,  31 

headings,  29-31 

subheads,  29-31,  98 

summary,  38  (illus.),  40,  107 

card  form,  82,  93,  95,  96  (ii- 
lus.), 98,  99  (illus.),  101- 
03,  104  (illus.),  108  (il- 
lus.) 

balancing,  86-87,  109-10 

interesting,  88 

itemized,  88 

information  given  by,  88-89 

checking  with  budget,  89-90 

forms,  92 

loose  leaf,  93 

cash  record,  94 

entering  items,  95,  102-06 

box  for  cards,  101 

monthly  payment  list,  110-11 

simpler  for  individual,  151 

children's,  153-55 

checkbook,  and,  173 
Allowance 

for  wife,  14 

for  household,  13,  14 

children,  14,  58,  152-62 

automobile,  15,  58 

for  husband,  71 
Ambition,  social,  130-31 
Annuity,  197-99 
Apprentices 

children  as,  13,  17,  152 
Assessments,  42 
Asset,  conserving  as,  133-42 
Assets  list,  19 

how  to  make,  20 

card,  23  (illus.),  100,  107, 
189 


Association  dues,  73 
Automobile,  14,  15,  58-59,  117 


Balance 

accounts,  86-87,  110 

bank,  175-76 
Bank  account 

joint,   181-82 

trust,    182 
Bank  account  (checking),  163 

for  children,  160 

advantages,  165 

cost    of    carrying,    166,    175, 
181 

to  establish,  167 

deposits,   170,   173,    175,   180, 
182 

overdrawing,  179-80 
Bank  checks,  102 

as  receipts,  110,  177-78,  180 

convenient,  165 

signature,  167 

form  of  book,  168 

counter  cheek,  169 

numbering,  169 

stubs,  169,  172,  174,  175,  178 

how  to  write,   170-72 

raising,  171-72 

entered  on  accounts,  173 

returned  by  bank,  174 

exchange  on,  175,  178-79 

cashing  promptly,  177 

keeping,   177-78 

certified,  179 

protested,  180 

endorsing,  180-81 
Bank  draft,  178 
Bank  statement 

checking  up,  174-76 
Banker    as    adviser,    183,    190, 
197,  200 


205 


206 


INDEX 


Banks,  163-84 

types,  163 

See  also  Savings  banks 
Bathrobe,  48 
Beauty,  7 

Bedniaking,  125,  128-29,  130 
Belt,  48 
Bonds,  79,  182 

listing,  20,  100,  189,  191 

depreciation,  21 

government,  186,  187-88,  192 

loss  of,  187 

coupons,  188 

interest  on,  188 

marked,  191 

forced  sale,  191,  192 
Bonds,  income,  197-99 
Books,  59,  74-75 

inventory,  146 
Borrowing,  5,  6 

on  securities,  192 
Box  budget  system,  26 
Box  for  account  cards,  101 
Boys.     See  Children 
Budget 

definition,   1 

limits,  3,  36-37,  158 

purpose,  3-4,  85-86,  132 

personal  matter,  7 

importance,  8-9,  85-86,  203 

who  makes,  16-17 

children  assisting,    17,  35-36, 
91,  120 

how  make,  19-40,  79 

accounts  as  basis,  19 

for  what  period,  24-25 

date  of  beginning,  25 

time  to  make,  25,  107 

form,  26,  28,  38    (illus.) 

envelope  or  box  system,  26 

readjusting,  27,  35,  37,  56,  67, 
113-22 

headings  discussion,  28-29 

headings  advised,  29-31 

will  not  balance,  37 

card,  38  (illus.),  99 

checking  up,  89-90,  120 

adding  summary,  107 

individual,   148-51 

children    making    own,     152, 
156,  159,  160 


Budget 

result  of,  202-03 
Building  and  Loan,  190 
Business 

uses  money,  2 

household  as,   12 
-  wife's  knowledge,  16 
Business  man  as  adviser,   190, 

197,  200 
Business  obligations,  73-74 


Candles,  70 

Candlesticks  and  shades,  ,70 

Candy,  44 

Canning,  44-45 

Cards,  account,  82,  93,  95,  96 
(illus.),  98,  99  (illus.), 
101-03,  104  (illus.),  108 
(illus.) 

Care  of  house,  35,  55-57,  67,  68, 
80,  135-38 
card,  108   (illus.) 

Carfare,  41,  74,  84,  95 

Carpenter,  127 

Cash  record,  94 

Cash  vs.  credit,  pref. 

Chauffeur,  58,  80 

Check-book.     See  Bank  checks 

Checking 

accounts,        budget,        89-90, 

120 
bank  statement,  174-76 

Checks.     See  Bank  checks 

Children 

as  apprentices,  13,  17,  152 
allowances,  14,  58,  152-62 
helping  with  budget,   17,  35- 

36,  91,  120 
knowledge  of  limits,  17-18 
near  school,  41 
recreation,  59-60,  155 
increasing  income,   118-19 
labor  income  of,  126-30 
problems  of,  131 
training  the,   152-62 
paid  for  work,  153 
accounts  kept  by,  153-55 
budget  by,  152,  156,  159-60 
selecting     clothing,      156-57, 
159-60 


INDEX 


207 


Choice 

budget  affects,  4-5 
Chores,  126 

Cigarettes,     Cigars.      See     To- 
bacco 
Classification,  2S 
(Meaning.     See  Care  of  House 
Cleaning,  dry,  48,  08 
Clothing,   4,   7,   14,   33,   35,  45- 
55,  67,  68,  70,  71,  83,  114, 
117,  122,  150 
purpose  of,  45 
ideal,  46 
net  cost,  48,  69 
care  of,  49-50,   133-35 
silk,  17,  50,  60,  122,  134 
making  at  home,  51,  131 
money  tied  up,  51 
inventory,   53,    144 
budget,  54   (illus.),  55 
insurance,  55 
account,     98,     104      (illus.), 

106 
children      selecting,      156-57, 
159-60 
Club  dues,  61 
Collars,  51,  69 
Commissions,  income  from,  27, 

165 
Community  service,  36,  62,  65, 

140,  150-51,  186,  190,  203 
Conserving,  49-50,  133-42 
Convention  attendance,  73 
Conventions,   social,   8,   18,   114 
Cooperation 

in  family,  11-12,  17,  119,  127, 

130,  153,  161 
in  community,  36,  62-65,  140, 
150-51,  186,  190,  203 
Cosmetics,  83 
Cotton,  134 
Credit  unions,  191 
Credit  vs.  cash,  pref. 

Daily  balance,  86 
Debts,  24,  59,  77 
Depreciation  charge,  146 
Desires,  as  affecting  budget,  3, 

9,  35-36,  120-21 
Dishwashing.  125,  128-29 
Doilies,  138-39 


Dooley,  quoted,  194 
Dues,  61,  73 

Economy,  141 

definition,  6 
Edgeworth,       Maria,       quoted, 

1.17 
Education,  15,  59 

borrowing  for,  6 
Electricity,  69,  126 
Emergencies,  118-19 

saving  for,  7,  77-78,  114,  195- 
96,  201 
Energy,  use  of,  123-25 
Entertainment,    15,    60-61,    66, 

71,  73,  150 
Envelope  budget  system,  26 
Equipment.     See  Furnishings 
Executor,  200 
Experience,  as  asset,  125 
Express,  61-62 
Extravagance,  5,  8,  69,  124 

Family 

aim,  2,  10 

definition,  11 

as  business,  12 
Father.     See  Husband 
Fire  Insurance.    See  Insurance, 

Fire 
Fishing,  75 
Flowers,  57 

Food,  33,  42-45,  62,  67,  80,  84, 
95,  150 

values,  43 

card  (illus.),  10f> 
Fraternal  orders,  199-200 
Freight,  61-62 
Fuel,  62,  68,  69-70,  150 
Furnishings,  35,  56 

insurance,  55,  57 

care,  135-39 

inventory,  144-47 
Furs,  122,  144 

Garage,  58 

Gas,  69,  126 

Gifts   (Church,  etc.),  15,  62-65, 

121,  155 
Gifts  (Personal),  15,  62,  65-66, 

156 


208 


INDEX 


Girls.    See  Children 

Gloves,  48 

Guide  cards,  98,  99  (illus.),  100 

Handyman,  126-27 
Happiness 

aim  of  family,  2,  10 
Hats,  122 

card   (illus.),  104 
Head  of  family,  11 
Headings,  29-31,  98,  100 
Health,  66-67 

aim  of  family,  2 

call  on  savings,  6,  66-67,  1 14 

insurance,  67,  198 
House,  122 

owned,  33,  42,  56,  78,  83 

rented,  33,  42 

care  of.     See  Care  of  House 
Household  employee,  41,  80-82, 
129-30 

industrial  basis,  81 
Husband 

as  partner,  13,  15 

as  income-earner,  14 

as  investor,  14-15 

expenditure,  71-72 

bank  account,  182 

Ice,  43 

Ideals,  budget  shows,  9,  35,  40, 

203 
Income 

to  obtain  what,  1,  2,  5 

limits,  3 

loss    or    decrease,    7,    113-17, 

130 
earning  and  spending,  13 
belongs  to,  13,  14 
knowledge  of  sources,  13 
for  budget,  26-27 
irregular,  27-28,  164-65 
from  owned  house,  42 
card,  96    (illus.),  99-100 
increase  in,  118,  120-22 
besides  money,  123-32 
labor,  125-32 

Income  bond,  197-99 

Income  tax,   34,   82,    100,    167, 
190 


Individual  budget,  148-51 
Inheritance  tax,  182,  200 
Insurance,    34,   37,   55,   57,   67- 
68,  135,  182 

fire,  42,  55,  57,  67,  144,  147 
Insurance,  life,  79,  197-99 

amount  saved,  22 

endowment,  197 

income,  bond,  197-99 

women,  198-99 
Interest 

on  debts,  59 

on  savings,  167,  186-87,  193- 
95 
Inventories,  137,  143-47 

value  in  assets,  22 

headings,  144 

how  to  make,  144-46 
Investments,  5,   15-16,  59,  185- 
201 

who  makes,  15-16 

list  of,  20,  189 

asking  advice  on,  189-90,  197, 
200 

expecting  large  returns,  193- 
95 

joint,  200 

See  also  Savings  and   Bonds 

Janitor,  126-27 

Jewelry,  47,  70,  107,  144,  183- 

84 
Joint  account,  181-82 
Joint  safety-deposit,  183 

Kitchen  utensils,  136-38 

Labor  cost,  140-42 
Labor  income,   125-32 
Lamps,  lampshades,  70 
Laundry,  68-69,  80,  82,  126,  139 
Liabilities 

list,  19,  22 

card    (illus.),  23 
Life  insurance.     See  Insurance 
Light,  69-70,  150 
Lighting  fixtures,  70 
Linen,  134 

Linen    (household),  68-69,  138- 
39 


INDEX 


209 


Living  conditions,  7,  41 

Loss 

provision    for,    7 

oi  position,  117 

of  income,  113-17,  130 

Lost    (heading),  70 

Luxuries   (heading),  71 

Magazines,  59,  74 

Manicure,  83 

Man's  expenditure,  71-72 

Marriage  a  partnership,  13 

Matches,  70 

Miscellaneous     (heading),     92, 

144 
Money,  uses  of,  2,  131 
Monthly  balance,  87 
Monthly  payments  list,  110-11 
Mortgage,  24,  59 
Mother.    See  Wife 
Moths,  134-35 
Music,  75 

Napkins,  138-39 
Newspapers,  59,  74,  95 
Notebooks,  94,  102 

Parcel  post,  61-62,  66,  73 
Parties,  61 
Partnership 

marriage  a,  13 

what  this  means,  14,  16 

shirking.   15 
Pensions,  199 
Percentages,   learning  to  think 

in,  32,  86 
Percentages  of  budget,  34 
Perfume,  83 
Periodicals,  59,  74 
Photography,  75, 
Postage,  72-73 

parcel  post,  61-62,  66,  73 

letter,  72-73 

card  (illus.),  96 
Powder  (face),  83 
Preserving,  44-45 
Prices,  rise  in,  116 
Professional  obligations,  73-74 
Pudding  story,  9 


Reading,  59,  74,  150 
Real  estate,  22,  24,  79,  83 
Receipts 

hie,  110 

checks  as,  165,  177-78 
Recreation,  7,  11,  15,  42,  44,  59, 

61,  75-76,  84,  150,  155 
Rent,  33,  37,  41-42,  67,  114,  118, 

121,  150 
Repairs,  126,  133,  135 

house,  42 
Reserve  fund.     See  Savings 
Rosamond  story,  157-58 
Rubber  deteriorates,  134 
Rug,  136 

Safety  deposit,  147,  182-83,  186, 

187,  189 
Sanitation,  7 

Savings,   15,  37,   76-80,  83,  86, 

90,    107,   110,    116,   185-201 

for  emergencies,  7,  77-78,  114, 

195-96,  201 
special  funds,  15,  77,  196 
amount  to  be  saved,  34,  76, 

77-78,  121 
purposes  of,  77-78,  195-99 
for  future  income,  77-78,  149, 

196-99,  201 
loss  of,  185,  186,  201 
how  invest  family,  200 
Savings   banks,    164,    186,    192, 
195 
using,  166-67 
interest,  167,  186-87 
Securities.     See  Bonds,  Invest- 
ments, Savings 
Self-support,  161-62 
Servant,     See    Household    em- 
ployee 
Service,  41,  44,  58,  68,  80-82,  84, 

150 
Sewing,  48,  51,  125 
Shampoo,  83 
Shoes,  50 

Signature    (banking),  170,  180 
Silk  clothing,   17,  50,   69,   122, 

134 
Soap,  68.  83 
Soft  drinks,  44 


210 


INDEX 


Speculation,  21,  194 
Stationery,  73,  82 
Stockings,  48 
Stocks 

listing  value,  20 
Subheads,  29-31,  98 
Summary  (accounts),  40,  107 

card   fillus.),  38 
Sundries  (as  heading),  92 

Taxes,  42,  82-83 

income,  34,  82,  100 

inheritance,   182,  200 
Telegram,  83 
Telephone,  34,  83 
Time,  use  of,  123-25 
Tobacco,  44,  75 
Toilet,  83 
Toothbrush,  83 
Transportation,  83-84 

carfare,  41,  74,  84,  95 

other,  80,  84 
Trust  account,  182 
Trust  company 

account  in,  163-64 

as  executor,  200 

Umbrella,  48.   134 
Unemployment,  114 

provision  for  period  ol,  164 


Uniformity  (social),  8 

Vacation,  42,  84 

Valuation    (inventory),    145-47 

Values,  9 

Vegetable  garden,  44,  80 

Waste,  13,  133,  140-42 
Weekly  balance,  87,  110 
Wife 

not  paid  worker,  12 

as  partner,  13,  15 

as  spender,  13,  15,  128 

allowance,  14 

as  investor,  15-16 

as  earner,  126 

bank  account,  182 

investments,  200 
Will,  making,  200 
Wishes,  story  of  three,  9 
Women 

as  investors,  16 

knowledge  of  family  income, 
16 

life  insurance,  198 

income  bond  for,  198-99 

See  also  Wife 
Wool,  134 

Yearly  balance,  87 


Date  Due 

JAN  - 

3  1973 

flpp  -r. 

1973 

— -'1 

Q^§| 

- 

01992 

MAR  3 

JAN  I8 

1997 

»■ 

i 

(g) 

3-jflP 

o  9031   01774209  9 


TKi  3  6 


BOSTON   COLLEGE  LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY    HEIGHTS 
CHESTNUT  HILL,  MASS. 


Books  may  be  kept  for  two  weeks  and  may 
be  renewed  for  the  same  period,  unless  re- 
served. 

Two  cents  a  day  is  charged  for  each  book 
kept  overtime. 

If  you  cannot  find  what  you  want,  ask  the 
Ivibrarian  who  will  be  glad  to  help  you. 

The  borrower  is  responsible  for  books  drawn 
on  his  card  and  for  all  fines  accruing  on  the 
same. 


